House Subcommittee Urged to Protect Credit Union Voice, Community Development Funding

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the Defense Credit Union Council (DCUC) wrote to House Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government Chairman Dave Joyce and Ranking Member Steny Hoyer ahead of the June 30 oversight hearing with OMB Director Russell Vought. ​

In its comments, DCUC respectfully requested that lawmakers seek commitments from Director Vought on three priorities critical to credit unions and the communities they serve: 
 

• Restore a formal credit union advisory voice at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) by reinstating the Credit Union Advisory Council or establishing a comparable advisory body. 

• Maintain a targeted, risk-based approach to consumer protection that focuses oversight on bad actors while reducing unnecessary regulatory burdens on member-owned credit unions. 

• Protect the timely distribution of appropriated CDFI Fund and NCUA Community Development Revolving Loan Fund (CDRLF) resources to ensure underserved communities, including military families, continue to receive access to affordable financial services. 

 
DCUC also encouraged the Subcommittee to ensure government efficiency efforts do not eliminate formal stakeholder engagement or delay congressionally authorized programs that expand financial inclusion and support military readiness. 
 
"Credit unions need a meaningful seat at the table when policies affecting their members are being developed," states Jason Stverak, DCUC Chief Advocacy Officer. "We encourage the Subcommittee to use this hearing to reaffirm a balanced, risk-based regulatory approach, restore a formal credit union voice at the CFPB, and ensure critical community development resources are delivered as Congress intended. These priorities strengthen financial access, consumer protection, and the financial readiness of military families and underserved communities." 
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DCUC provided the Subcommittee leaders with the following suggested questions for Director Vought during the hearing or for the record:  

1. Will OMB support re-establishing the CFPB’s Credit Union Advisory Council, or a functionally equivalent formal advisory body, so that credit unions have a direct, structured channel to advise CFPB leadership before policy decisions are made?  
2. Will OMB and the CFPB commit to a risk-based consumer-protection approach that targets bad actors and high-risk nonbanks while reducing duplicative regulatory burdens on credit unions already supervised by NCUA?
   
3. How will OMB ensure that CFPB budget and operational decisions preserve core consumer-protection functions, including servicemember protection, complaint handling, financial education, and practical compliance assistance?  
4. Will OMB commit to the timely apportionment and release of appropriated CDFI Fund and NCUA CDRLF resources, and will it avoid adding administrative requirements that delay awards to certified CDFIs and low-income credit unions?  
5. What safeguards will OMB use to ensure that government-wide reductions, reorganizations, or budget controls do not impair statutory programs that support financial inclusion, servicemember readiness, and underserved communities? ​