WASHINGTON—The battle to preserve the credit union tax exemption this year may not be fully settled.
Although President Trump signed H.R. 1 on July 4—preserving credit unions’ tax-exempt status—momentum is already building among Senate Republicans for another sweeping domestic policy package, according to POLITICO.
Senate Finance Committee Chair Mike Crapo (R-ID) has joined a growing GOP chorus pushing for a second party-line bill, potentially as soon as this fall.
“I’ve always been in favor of a three-bill strategy, and there’s a ton of things that we need to do,” Crapo told POLITICO.
His comments come amid rising chatter from House Republican leaders, administration officials, and conservative lawmakers about leveraging the budget reconciliation process once again to pass legislation without Democratic support—potentially reviving issues like tax policy, POLITICO said.
The Defense Credit Union Council addressed the threat.
“As Congress looks toward another budget reconciliation bill this fall – and potentially one or even two more next year – lawmakers will undoubtedly be searching for new ‘pay-fors’ to offset their plans,” said DCUC Chief Advocacy Officer Jason Stverak.
“Let me be clear: the credit union tax-exempt status must remain off the table,” continued Stverak. “Make no mistake, we may have won this round – with Congress ultimately preserving credit unions’ tax status in the last budget package – but this fight is far from over. This is a twelve-round fight, and DCUC will be in the ring every single day, fighting for our members. We’ve already shown our ability to lead a coalition of industry partners this year alone to defend the credit union mission – and we’ll continue to throw our full weight behind protecting our members’ financial well-being at every turn.”
Washington Credit Union advocate John McKechnie assessed the threat.
“House Speaker (Mike) Johnson has also recently spoken of more reconciliations between now and the end of the current Congress, and his staff was quick to confirm this," McKechnie said. "So, there is a reason for continued vigilance, but that’s understood. I will add however that credit union activists should not feel like we are back at DEFCON 1 again. We aren’t.”