WASHINGTON–Regardless of how the presidential election turns out, one CUNA lobbyist is expecting two things: the next Congress will be just as gridlocked as the current Congress, and all the federal spending means new revenues will be a priority, and that could include new discussions around the CU tax exemption.
Ryan Donovan, chief advocacy officer with CUNA, said the trade group has been encouraged by its electoral successes related to the candidates it and its PAC have backed, but when Congress reconvenes in January of 2021 “there will be challenges and opportunities.”
“COVID is going to continue to dominate discussion in Washington,” said Donovan. “We want to ensure the policies coming out of Washington allow credit unions to continue to serve their members. This includes extending the CARES Act provisions.”
Regardless of who’s in charge, Donovan said he expects Congress will be looking to advance some legislation to provide economic recovery.
What to Expect
“It would be reasonable to expect given all the spending that has taken place by governments to deal with the pandemic, that there is going to be a close look at revenue generation at the federal and state level,” said Donovan. “And that’s going to put tax expenditures under significant scrutiny.”
Donovan said he believes that with all the groundwork CUNA has done in Congress, it is “in a really good position” heading into 20201.
“If past is prologue, we can anticipate significant gridlock,” said Donovan. “Telling our story and backing it up with data will be more important than ever.”
The State Level
Separately, looking to the state level, CUNA Chief Political Officer Richard Gose said the recent elections have only re-created the status quo, with no changes in governors and most state legislatures remaining in the same camps they were in prior to the elections.
“One of the main things is being prepared for whatever comes our way, because we know there is going to be a lot of economic stress and pressures,” said Gose. “We are prepared to show the economic impact credit unions have in communities and states. There are a lot of decisions to be made by states in how they handle their fiscal challenges.”