As promised, we are back with more content from the 2025 Governmental Affairs Conference held last week in Washington D.C. The event, hosted by America’s Credit Unions, saw four jam-packed days filled with dozens of speakers, hundreds of meetings on Capitol Hill, and thousands of credit union advocates flocking to the nation’s capital.

With so much content to sift through and so many urgent messages imparted on attendees, it can be difficult to figure out which credit unions should focus their attentions on first. With that in mind, today, we’ll focus on a few of the key takeaways and big-picture items covered at the conference, including the tax exemption fight, the NCUA’s future, and more, and what credit unions can do to get involved.

Taxes, taxes, and more taxes

Without a doubt, the most important takeaway from the week (so much so it risked overshadowing the actual set theme for the week) was the importance of the tax exemption issue. From America’s Credit Unions CEO Jim Nussle’s opening comments to his closing ones days later, the importance of telling the credit union story and conveying its importance to Congress was at the forefront of conversation.

Even before the new administration began, House Republicans began circulating a document that called for the end of the tax exemption as a means to fund the budget reconciliation bill. Since then, talk of follow through on this idea has become increasingly common, and the industry is now well aware of just how legitimate this possibility is and how desperately advocacy efforts are needed in response.

From speakers at the earlier held Underground Collision to speakers on the main stage at GAC to congressional guest speakers, each and every one conveyed how critical these pushback efforts are. Because while this is not the first (nor likely the last) time the tax-exemption status has been threatened, all were in agreement that this particular attempt feels different than those in the past. Given the current political climate and the extreme ongoing changes, the conditions under which such a measure could see the light of day have never been more optimal than they are now.

Now, that does not mean the outcome is a foregone conclusion, but it should stress just how very real the threat to credit unions is and why it is absolutely necessary for every credit union—including yours, reader—to step up to the plate and fight back. This is the time for credit unions to ramp up their grassroots advocacy work. Call your representative and share how your credit union is making real, positive changes in the lives of your members and just how taxation would affect that impact. If you need help coming up with a script or getting data to use in these discussions, America’s Credit Unions and the Don’t Tax My Credit Union campaign can offer assistance.

The future of the NCUA

This is not an entirely new topic, but rather one we’ve been discussing since administration changes back in January. However, we’re going to cover it again, as the conference brought new insights and information to the discussion and there were quite a number of futures for the NCUA (and by extension, the industry as a whole) tossed around throughout the week. While some of these changes seem imminent, others were much less likely but still in the realm of possibility—enough so that they became key talking points in general and breakout sessions.

During the conference, we heard from two of the three NCUA board members, including Board Chairman Kyle Hauptman and Board Member Tanya Otsuka, on how recent executive orders and rumored future ones will impact the agency. For starters, the largest impact has been Executive Order number 14215, which ordered the NCUA to be brought under authority of the Executive Branch, meaning the agency will lose its status as an independent regulator. Under the order, the NCUA would need to align its policies with those of the administration, appoint a liaison between the NCUA and the White House, and submit all proposed changes to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs.

But a loss of NCUA independence is not the only outcome facing the agency. As the current administration looks to cut spending and consolidate agencies, the idea of the NCUA being absorbed into the FDIC has been mentioned, as has the proposal of both agencies being absorbed into the Treasury Department. While these certainly fall under the “less likely” category, they are not inconceivable. Additionally, any of these outcomes would most likely lead to decreased regulation of the industry—or one-size-fits-all regulation that treats banks and credit unions as one in the same—and decreased representation for credit unions in D.C.

America’s Credit Unions made it clear they do not support any outcome other than the NCUA continuing to operate as an independent regulator and will continue to advocate for that result, though it might be out of their hands should the executive order hold up. In the meantime, we’ll be diving into a more in-depth look at the future possibilities lined up for the agency, including comments from former NCUA employees, in a future article, so be on the look out.

Government shake-ups cannot shake us

Change can be a nerve-wracking and frightening thing, and we’ve had no shortage of it these last few weeks and are likely to see more in the coming ones. However, in the face of all this change and looming threats, credit unions cannot lose sight of our purpose nor can we let it steer us from our daily work. Credit unions must continue to impact their communities and improve the lives of their members every day in a way that only bolsters the overall credit union story. Because without this work, there is no story to tell, and as Nussle remarked, if credit unions are not at the table telling the story, “we’ll be on the menu.”

Nussle was not alone in this notion, though. Throughout the entirety of GAC, credit union speakers and advocacy workers continued to highlight the importance of not letting the noise going on around us distract us from what’s important. But rather, we should use it as motivation to fight even harder and continue to impart the importance of cooperative financial institutions. Lean into the chaos a bit, as Nussle suggested, to work through it and come out stronger on the other side.

Elissa McCarter-Laborde of the World Council of Credit Unions also served as a testament to this, sharing how her organization is continuing to push forward—despite cuts to USAID that impacted the organization’s funding and their global advocacy work—choosing to rally the movement in support of these causes. Credit unions should follow McCarter-Laborde’s lead and use these shakeups as an opening to collaborate with one another, work with advocacy groups, and showcase the cooperative difference. In doing so, we can ensure that the hard work credit unions do is recognized and help secure the industry’s future.

Make a difference

It is true that this year’s lessons look a tad different than years past, as the conference took place during what is a very tumultuous time for credit unions, where so much is uncertain. Therefore, if you walk away from this article and the GAC season as a whole with only one takeaway, let it be this one: now is the time to get involved. As Senator Ron Wyden said, now is not the time to assume we’ve got these victories “in the bag.”

It’s also important to remember that while these were certainly the highlights of the week, this was not, by any means, a comprehensive list of everything covered at GAC this year. There’s a lot more to learn and digest, some of which we’ll be covering in future articles. If you’re interested in seeing a more detailed breakdown of the week and all the topics covered, you can find all our daily reporting from the 2025 Governmental Affairs Conference below.