DCUC Successful in Opposition to Unrelated 2025 NDAA Amendments

Anthony Hernandez

Yesterday, the U.S. Senate released the 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) without including any provisions to amend the Federal Credit Union Act (FCUA) for share insurance coverage for deposits made at a credit union operating the Overseas Military Banking Program (OMBP) contract. The Defense Credit Union Council (DCUC) has engaged with both houses of Congress, sharing the full perspective of the credit union industry regarding the proposed FCUA amendments while highlighting the potential adverse impacts that would follow.

In early May, DCUC President/CEO Anthony Hernandez and Chief Advocacy Officer (CAO) Jason Stverak held multiple successful meetings with staff from the offices of Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), and Congressman Steven Horsford (D-NV), discussing several legislative priorities including its position on the 2025 NDAA mark-up.

On May 22, DCUC sent a letter to Chairman Mike Rogers and Ranking Member Adam Smith of the House Armed Services Committee, urging the Committee protect the credit union industry’s tax exemption by rejecting an amendment submitted by Representative Jen Kiggans (R-VA) to change the FCUA to allow for non-member deposits. DCUC’s letter emphasized that while the amendment was well-intentioned, it could significantly harm credit unions without broad industry support.

Additionally, on June 21, DCUC and America’s Credit Unions (ACU) sent a joint letter to Chairman Jack Reed and Ranking Member Roger Wicker of the Senate Armed Services Committee, cautioning against the inclusion of any unrelated credit union amendments to the NDAA ahead of its consideration by the full Senate.

Both associations referenced the intense discussion regarding the Department of Defense’s (DoD) OMBP and the contract award to a credit union. The letter underscored their position in urging Congress to maintain a “clean” NDAA focused on military readiness and stability in providing financial services to our armed forces and veterans. DCUC and ACU also highlighted how premature legislative actions regarding the proposed FCUA amendments could bring potential disruptions to the DoD’s established financial service framework on military bases.

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