The President's Perspective

DakCU op-ed gains attention as IRS reporting proposal is likely to resurface.  Plus, get ready for National Co-op Month and ICU Day just around the corner! 

Greetings and Happy Monday!
 
It’s the final Monday of September, just a few days away from National Co-op Month in October – and less than a month away from International Credit Union Day on October 21st.  This year, we are looking forward with the theme of “Building financial health for a brighter tomorrow.”  More information about our ICU Day resources later in my blog!
 
IRS Reporting Proposal Likely to Resurface while DakCU’s Op-Ed Gains Attention
This week, Congress has a deadline to consider the $5 Trillion spend and tax proposal.  One of the issues that could resurface is the IRS reporting proposal requiring financial institutions to report inflows and outflows on individual accounts of over $600.  Included in the proposal is wording to double the number of IRS agents to 80,000.
 
During mark-up in the House Ways and Means Committee a little over one week ago, the proposal was removed.  However, as we have been warning, this proposal will likely resurface.  In fact, Congressman Kevin Brady (TX), ranking member of the Ways and Means Committee, indicated over the weekend the IRS reporting proposal would likely resurface before the bill comes to the House floor for a vote. 
 
One thing we know for sure – many consumers are not aware of the detrimental and intrusive IRS reporting proposal that is a distinct possibility with the American Families Plan.  Last week, I penned an opinion editorial (op-ed) article, “IRS Reporting Proposal Nothing More than a Hunting Exercise” highlighting the negative impact this issue will have on credit unions, banks and on consumers.  In part, my editorial says, “This unprecedented access to consumers’ personal financial data raises several alarms. Not only would this proposal expand the IRS scope along with a massive funding hike, but we also feel its ultimate agenda would violate consumers’ personal privacy by forcing our credit unions and other financial institutions to provide the government with information that does not reflect taxable activity.” 
 
You can read the entire op-ed as shown in the Fargo Forum here, in the Bismarck Tribune here, and the Jamestown Sun here, and we are hopeful that the larger South Dakota papers will soon publish as well.  In addition, we have expanded our outreach and submitted our op-ed to many of the smaller rural weekly newspapers.  It’s critical that consumers understand the intent behind this proposal.
 
As of last Wednesday, more than 9,000 credit union advocates have already voiced their opinion through CUNA’s Grassroots Action Center.  If you haven’t already done so, be sure to make your voice heard by sending a message now.  We need to keep the pressure on!  Don’t hesitate to contact Jay Kruse, our Chief Advocacy Officer, if you would like to learn more about the CUNA MAP (Member Activation Program) to help engage your members in a very efficient way.
 
GAC Registration Open
We are thrilled to share that the Credit Union National Association (CUNA) opened registration for the 2022 GAC (Government Affairs Conference) scheduled for February 27 – March 3, 2022, in Washington, DC.  We have already received several inquiries about availability of hotels and agenda!  Our staff is working on a “one stop GAC shop” for our website that will include links to registration and accommodations, and Heacock GAC “Hike the Hill” Scholarship applications, which will be available in early October.  We’ll announce in the Memo once we launch the GAC page; meanwhile, you can find information here on CUNA’s website.
 
CUNA's GAC is the premier event of the credit union movement.  The conference brings together nearly 5,000 credit union leaders from across the country to advocate on their members’ behalf at league-coordinated Hike the Hill events, during which attendees meet with members of the U.S. Congress and engage them in conversations on important credit union issues.  It’s certainly a credit union highlight of the year!
 
ICU Day Resources Available Now!
Last week, our new Director of Marketing, Lindsey Hefta, sent out ICU Day graphics and other materials to our member credit union CEOs and marketing staff in advance of ICU Day coming up on Thursday, October 21st.  We hope our collaborative efforts will help to keep a consistent message across the Dakotas this year, bringing credit unions to the forefront as a better financial services option for consumers.  Be sure to contact Lindsey if you need any assistance with ICU Day materials.
 
I know many of our Dakota credit unions coordinate and host special activities throughout the month and on ICU Day.  There are also plenty of “plug and play” resources available from CUNA to help you plan and celebrate this year’s event, many are free and available here. 
 
No In-House Counsel?  No Worries!
Don’t forget – our first session of the series “Attorney’s Conference for Non-Attorneys,” is tomorrow, September 28.  This series is a collaboration with six other Midwest leagues to help credit unions handle pressing legal and compliance risks.  Each session is just $25 – and you can still register if you act quickly!  These webinars are designated for CEOs and managers that must deal with legal issues and don’t have in-house counsel.  We believe that this information, along with risk mitigation strategies, will help protect credit unions from liability and from having outside legal expenses.  Get complete details here and be sure to register for each individual session.
 
Congratulations to First Community CU
Finally, I would like to send a shout out to Steve Schmitz and the management staff at First Community Credit Union (Jamestown, ND).  This is the second consecutive year they have been named one of the “50 Best Places to Work” by Prairie Business Magazine.  The criteria FCCU met and exceeded in the selection process included workplace culture, opportunities for employee growth, and employee morale.  Congratulations on this achievement!
 
Have a great week! 

President/CEO
​Dakota Credit Union Association