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Following the Senate's failure to advance another "skinny" version of its proposed Phase 4 relief package, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin – who has been representing the Trump administration in relief negotiations – continue to discuss a possible deal. NAFCU's award-winning advocacy team is monitoring discussions and sharing credit union priorities with lawmakers and key stakeholders.

According to news reports, Pelosi has asked Democratic committee chairs to work with their Republican counterparts to hash out some specific policy disputes. Of note, two of the biggest remaining policy issues are related to funding for state and local governments and legal protections to provide businesses and other entities operating during the pandemic.

NAFCU has specifically called for provisions to be included in any final legislation that would provide targeted relief for credit unions as they work to support their members, such as:

• providing relief from credit unions' member business lending (MBL) cap so they can provide more credit to small businesses impacted by the coronavirus pandemic;
• providing emergency funding for the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund and Community Development Revolving Loan Fund (CDRLF) to better serve underserved and lower-income communities; 
• extending several provisions included in the CARES Act related to the NCUA's Central Liquidity Facility, troubled debt restructurings, deposit insurance, the current expected credit loss (CECL) standard, and capital flexibility.  On Tuesday, a bipartisan group of 29 Representatives, led by Rep. Danny Davis (D-IL) wrote to House Leadership and urged inclusion of these measures in the next round of relief.
• modernizing the E-SIGN Act; and,
• issues related to simplifying the paycheck protection program (PPP) loan forgiveness process.

Earlier this week, NAFCU Vice President of Legislative Affairs Brad Thaler sent a message to NAFCU member credit unions outlining industry issues that Congress could work on during the post-election lame duck session (see a roundup of the issues here). While the association continues to push for more coronavirus-related relief and other industry priorities, it has achieved some key wins in 2020 to strengthen credit unions.

NAFCU's Grassroots Action Center is a great way to join the association's advocacy efforts and send messages directly to lawmakers. Through the platform, credit unions can also set up local meetings, access background information on important issues and utilize a variety of tools to take action.

Stay tuned to NAFCU Today for the latest developments.