WASHINGTON–The Independent Community Bankers of America is taking its “Wake Up” campaign attacking the credit union tax exemption to the state level.
As CUToday.info reported here, the ICBA’s campaign is calling on policymakers and the public to “Wake Up” to the “risky practices, costly tax subsidies, and irresponsibly lax oversight of the nation’s credit unions.”
As part of its campaign, the ICBA is also offering “custom resources” that borrow strategies straight from the credit union playbook, including a
“customizable grassroots alert calling on Congress to rein in the runaway credit union industry.”
Other materials available include custom op-eds, talking points, and additional information community bankers can use to “spread the word.”
‘Damages Caused by Credit Unions’
As CUToday.info has previously reported, with attacks on the CU tax exemption essentially going nowhere in Congress, the banking industry has been attacking CUs at the state level, and made progress in some cases. Under the headlined, “2019 Reports on Damages Caused by Credit Unions,” the ICBA Wake Up website includes individual data for each state to “show how credit unions have exceeded their original mandate and how that unchecked growth has negatively affected local communities across every state.”
The talking points can be found here, while talking points on credit union acquisitions of banks can be found here.
Both credit union trade groups have responded, with CUNA clarifying the reason for the credit union tax exemption and issuing a statement citing the more than a quarter-trillion dollars paid by banks in fines over the last decade, and NAFCU saying the real issue is big banks "eating community banks' lunch."
‘Shoddy’ Work
NAFCU said it has reviewed the ICBA campaign and doesn’t see anything new in it.
“We went through their materials and found some inaccuracies that we have raised with them,” said NAFCU EVP and General Counsel Carrie Hunt. “It looks like a shoddy and thrown-together piece of work. It is designed to keep us occupied and to get a competitive advantage over credit unions. We believe there is room for everyone. Of course, it is frustrating for our members to have to respond.”