RALEIGH, N.C./COLUMBIA, S.C.–The Carolinas Credit Union League and the GoWest Credit Union Association are reporting they took advantage of the summer congressional recess to meet with numerous elected officials, respectively.
The Carolinas Credit Union League is reporting that its representatives and those of more than 20 credit unions met with a total of 10 members of Congress during the August congressional in-district work period.
In addition, the CCUL, which represents credit unions in North and South Carolina, said CUs also met with two legislative staffers to discuss priorities.
Beginning with a meeting with Sen. Ted Budd’s (R-NC) staff, the league said over a 17-day stretch, meetings--including four over five days and a three-meeting flurry at the end of effort—credit unions were able to hold the meetings away from Washington, allowing elected officials to dedicate more time and attention away from potential votes, hearings, and other distractions.
“With so many timely issues such as interchange, CFPB regulation, digital currency proposals, and general state of the financial industry following the recent bank failures, our credit unions were eager to meet with our elected officials,” league Federal Affairs Manager Nate Lane said in a statement “They have had much to talk about and appreciate being included in these conversations.”
Focus of Meetings
According to the Carolinas league, the meetings focused on:
- Explaining the purpose of credit card interchange and the “harmful impacts” of Durbin 2.0 on financial institutions, small business, and consumers if enacted.
- “Appreciation and support” for the Credit Union Board Modernization Act to allow credit union boards to operate more efficiently and effectively.
- Expanding consumer access to credit unions through legislation that will give more people—especially the underserved—the option to join a credit union for their financial needs.
- “Sharing the credit union difference including their outreach as vested members of their local communities.”
- Underscoring the “importance of programs like the CDFI Fund, which helps designated credit unions better meet the particular financial services needs of underserved communities.”
Of Particular Interest
Those issues, the league said, were of particular interest to Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) on the Senate Banking Committee and Reps. Ralph Norman (SC-05) and William Timmons (SC-04) on the House Financial Services Committee, each visiting credit union locations along their itineraries.
‘Face to Face’
“It’s always great to get a chance to sit down and talk face to face with any elected official, especially a senior member of the Senate Banking Committee,” Skyla Chief Administration Officer and General Counsel Joe Clark said in a statement. Clark, alongside the league and leaders of three other credit unions met with Sen. Tillis. “I appreciate Sen. Tillis’ candid remarks and his continued support of the credit union movement.”
Additional Meetings
Credit unions in the Carolinas also met with Reps. Joe Wilson (SC-02) in Aiken, SC; Chuck Edwards (NC-11) in Fletcher, NC; Kathy Manning (NC-06) in Greensboro; Reps. Jeff Duncan (SC-03) and Russell Fry (SC-07) in Anderson; and Rep. David Rouzer’s (NC-07) Legislative Aide Chris Zhou in Wilmington, NC. As Congress returns to Washington and credit unions plan an October trip there, the league has an eye on an even more active August 2024 schedule.
GoWest Association Meets With Reps
Separately, during the August congressional recess, the GoWest Credit Union Association said it and its member credit union advocates have been meeting with senators and congressional representatives in their home districts across all six states represented by the association – Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming.
According to the association, two key “resources in their toolbox are a comprehensive analysis by the consultancy Cornerstone Advisors documenting the harmful effects of the CCCA’s predecessor legislation, the Durbin Amendment, and GoWest’s high-level infographic showcasing Cornerstone Advisors’ rich data.”
“As we advocate collaboratively to pull out all the stops to defeat S.1838/H.R. 3881, we know it’s critically important to provide as much real data as possible showing the legislation is misguided,” said Ryan Fitzgerald, GoWest’s senior vice president, advocacy. “In our meetings, we have received very positive feedback on Cornerstone’s excellent analysis, and some Members of Congress have also asked for a brief overview to aid in their discussions before they take a deeper dive into the full report.”
Points Raised
The GoWest Association said key data points being shared with Congress included:
- The promise of the Durbin Amendment was not fulfilled
- Only 1% of merchants passed savings from reduced interchange fees along to consumers, 77% did not, and 22% increased prices
- The number of free checking accounts offered by financial institutions with assets of $10 billion or over dropped from 60% to 20%
- The average checking fees for consumers rose from $4.34 to $7.44 a month
‘No Responsibility’
The GoWest Association said that “merchants, who benefit greatly from the convenience of credit card purchases while bearing little to no responsibility in managing the costs of fraud, will be allowed to determine which networks credit card transactions are processed on.”
The association told members of Congress that merchants may select the least expensive – and the least secure—routing, which would require financial institutions to replace existing credit cards at a projected cost of over $3 trillion.
The association said it urged each member of Congress with whom it met to oppose the Credit Card Competition Act.
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