It can be uncharacteristically quiet in the nation’s capital during the post-election “lame duck” session before the end of the year. Even more so after a presidential election, when most eyes are on next year, the next Congress, the next assignment in the next administration.
Both chambers of Congress and their committees will look different next year. Retirements, administration appointments, and filling those vacancies mean new leaders and new staff.
But the 118th Congress has business to finish before this year ends. It must fund both the military and the federal government, and this presents opportunities to advance widely supported bipartisan policies that will benefit credit unions and their members.
Fortunately, credit unions support a number of policies that are exactly that: common-sense legislation that would help credit unions serve members better and, in turn, focus even more on serving members and communities.
- The Credit Union Board Modernization Act (which has 60 co-sponsors in the House and 34 in the Senate), would simplify federal credit union board meeting requirements, freeing up time and resources for members. The legislation already passed the House.
- The Secure and Fair Enforcement Banking Act (130 co-sponsors in the House, 42 in the Senate) would provide a much-needed safe harbor for financial institutions serving legal cannabis businesses. It’s passed the House multiple times, and a version has Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., as a co-sponsor.
- The Community Development Fund Transparency Act (28 co-sponsors in the House, four in the Senate) would take additional steps to ensure CDFI Fund grants are being put to the best use to elevate the communities that need it.
As you can see, these bills have broad support and would bolster credit unions’ abilities to serve their members. Let’s tell policymakers to move on these bills and together we can move onto new priorities in the new Congress.
Just as important as finding opportunities with an aggressive offense, we remain vigilant for last minute threats as lawmakers also look to attach bill language that we oppose.
That includes the Big Box Bailout bill. The Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman used the final weeks of session to hold a hearing on his misguided interchange legislation last week—in a committee that has no jurisdiction over the issue. Not a single credit union nor any other community financial institution had the opportunity to testify about the impact of this legislation, failing to provide key context on the potential harm.
While Chairman Durbin and the bill’s supporters can make all sorts of claims, the data is clear that this bill would be a windfall to the biggest retailers at the expense of small businesses and consumers.
We have more than a decade’s worth of data showing Chairman Durbin’s last price cap failed to do anything but increase big retailer profit margins, and we can’t afford to make that same mistake again.
This bill would have a seismic impact on the entire payments system, and doesn’t deserve a committee vote, let alone be attached to legislation to fund our troops or keep the federal government running.
We put up a strong defense, but there is still time and plenty of opportunities to make positive impacts in this lame duck. We shouldn’t waste the final weeks of this Congress when there’s common sense, bipartisan legislation out there that can help a lot of people.
