Legislative Update with Chesney

Advocacy is in high gear at this year’s Summit, while major action is happening in Washington, DC. 

by Chesney Garnos, Director of Political & Grassroots Affairs
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Last night, we kicked off the Annual Summit in Fargo with the return of our Stack the PAC Recognition Event, an evening dedicated to celebrating those who supported our state and federal PACs in North and South Dakota throughout 2024. Thanks to your generosity and engagement, both states saw record-breaking fundraising years, marking a major milestone in our advocacy history. None of this would have been possible without the commitment of our credit unions and their unwavering support for our PAC efforts. It was a fun evening, and I cannot wait to keep celebrating your accomplishments all week at Summit!

Railway Credit Union took home 1st place for the DakCU ND Pacesetter Award raising over 632% of their yearly 2024 PAC goal. Oahe FCU took home 1st place for the DakCU SD Pacesetter Award raising over 350% of their yearly 2024 PAC goal.
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Join in on the silent auction fun!
Our silent auction and gift card raffle is back at this year's Summit to support the Roger Heacock Scholarship Fund! Since 2008, 101 scholarships have been awarded for a total of $85,500 allowing many individuals to become more engaged and involved in the credit union movement! 
  
This year’s silent auction went LIVE this morning starting at 8:20 a.m. and will run until 8:00 p.m. tomorrow (Wednesday, May 14). To get registered it is as simple as texting DakCU to 56651 or visiting https://dakcu.cbo.io and setting up your account. 

Friendly reminders:

• All bidders must be located in North or South Dakota to participate and bidders must be at least 21 years of age to bid on items that include alcohol.  

Reminders if you WIN:

• You will receive an automatic notification through ClickBid if you are the high bidder. 
• If you are present at the Summit, please retrieve your item(s) in person. 
• If you are not at Summit, please arrange for someone from your area to pick up your item(s) or we will contact you to help deliver your donation; shipping fees may apply. 

 
Don’t Tax My Credit Union
Have you heard the news? Yesterday, the House Ways and Means Committee released the “The One, Big, Beautiful Bill” from Chairman Jason Smith (R-MO). In this 389-page reconciliation bill, we found no references to “credit unions,” “federal credit unions,” or 501(c)(14) in the bill. Thank you to all your efforts so far to ensure our message has been clear: “Don’t Tax My Credit Union”!

We’ll stay alert for any harmful amendments as the bill is expected for markups this week and then expected to be on the House floor within the next two weeks before heading to the Senate. Please continue sending grassroots messages to Rep. Fedorchak and Rep. Johnson during this time. We will continue to keep you all updated.

With all the action happening in DC, that is not going to stop us from getting involved at Summit. Make sure to stop by our Don’t Tax My Credit Union Postcard Station to fill out a postcard urging Rep. Julie Fedorchak (ND) and Rep. Dusty Johnson (SD) to continue protecting credit unions from federal taxation.

How it works:

• Grab a printed postcard at the station near Summit Registration.
• Fill it out with your name and complete address.
• Drop it in the correct state box — ND or SD — based on where your credit union is located.

Reminder if already participating:

• If your branch has been collecting completed postcards, please bring them to our postcard station at Summit. Ensure you right down your credit union name, state, and total of postcards submitted.

Last but certainly not least, our team at Dakota Credit Union Association along with the North and South Dakota Government Affairs Committees will personally deliver the collected postcards to Rep. Fedorchak’s office in Bismarck and Rep. Johnson’s office in Sioux Falls to ensure our collective voice and message is clear: "Don’t Tax My Credit Union!"

For any questions following the legislative session or other advocacy-related queries, please don't hesitate to reach me at [email protected].