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Minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee's July meeting show that committee members are split on the appropriate path forward for the federal funds rate. "Given the uncertainty," said NAFCU Vice President of Research and Chief Economist Curt Long, "NAFCU believes the next rate hike will likely have to wait until 2018."

"Committee members have formed two camps in regards to the FOMC's dual mandates of full employment and price stability," Long continued. "Some members believe the former mandate has been achieved and that by lingering in a low rate environment, the Fed is risking a quick and costly rise in inflation down the road. Others focus on the recent weakness in inflation and want to see evidence of stronger price growth before authorizing future rate hikes."

Also during the July meeting, FOMC members discussed the appropriate time to start reducing the Federal Reserve's balance sheet. "Participants generally agreed that, in light of their current assessment of economic conditions and the outlook, it was appropriate to signal that implementation of the program likely would begin relatively soon, absent significant adverse developments in the economy or in financial markets," the minutes state.

Long noted that since all committee members remain on the same page in terms of beginning to taper the Fed's balance sheet, action will likely commence in September.

At the close of its two-day policy-setting meeting in July, the committee announced that it would be maintaining its current federal funds target rate and reinvestment policy for now.

The FOMC last raised the federal funds target rate to a range of 1 to 1.25 percent in June. The FOMC will meet again Sept. 19-20.