WASHINGTON— America’s Credit Unions and the Defense Credit Union Council used separate media calls Monday to deliver a clear message as Congress remains out of town: they see real alignment with the White House on fighting fraud, but they are also moving aggressively to protect CDFI funding and the credit union tax exemption as budget reconciliation and DHS funding talks begin to take shape.
At America’s Credit Unions, President/CEO Scott Simpson said the President’s FY2027 budget creates “both opportunities and some areas of concern,” with the clearest opportunity being the Administration’s focus on fraud.
“Fraud and scams have become industrialized and are wreaking havoc in the lives of Americans, including credit union members,” Simpson said, calling it “a major concern” for the movement and saying ACU sees “strong alignment” with the Administration as it pushes for more action.
But Simpson also said ACU remains deeply concerned over the proposed elimination of CDFI funding, stressing that the group has been pressing Administration officials and lawmakers because those funds are essential to “local economies, particularly those that are underserved and in rural communities.”
He added that “well over 100 Republicans” in Congress have already signaled support for preserving the program.
Defense Credit Union Council Chief Advocacy Officer Jason Stverak said that while Congress is still out this week, “that does not mean our advocacy efforts at DCUC have slowed down,” pointing specifically to the CDFI fight and to the next phase of budget reconciliation.
Stverak said the President wants part of DHS funding handled through reconciliation, with a “Reconciliation 2.0” package tied to DHS, ICE and CBP, and warned there could be “one, possibly two, reconciliation bills,” with “even the possibility of a third reconciliation bill this year” depending on how the politics unfold after the fall elections.
He said DCUC has been on guard ever since House Republicans’ 55-page reconciliation “pay-fors” list surfaced last year with the credit union tax exemption included, adding, “We’re not going to take anything for granted.”
Instead, he said, DCUC is in “steady communication with every office on the Hill,” making the case that the tax exemption matters “not only to defense credit unions but to the entire credit union movement” so that “if that discussion does happen, we’ve already done the work in advance so that the tax status is protected.”
Stverak also said he expects the Independent Community Bankers of America to escalate that pressure soon, saying that during its expected D.C. fly-in in the next three to four weeks, ICBA will likely push “the narrative of eliminating the credit union tax status.”
In addition, he praised NCUA Chairman Kyle Hauptman for staying on until a successor is confirmed and for leading what he called an “aggressive deregulation effort” to remove “outdated” and in some cases “nonsensical” rules.