Financial industry advocates expressed contentment at the fact the Senate Armed Services Committee’s FY25 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) does not contain any language related to banks or credit unions.
America’s Credit Unions (ACU) and the Defense Credit Union Council wrote to the committee in June, urging it to keep the NDAA “clean” of any “unnecessary policy provisions that distract from the focus on preserving a robust military and that could upset the balance the (Department of Defense) DOD has found with on-base financial services for its servicemembers.”
“One such amendment would amend the Federal Credit Union Act (FCUA) to provide share insurance for deposits made at a credit union operating the (Overseas Military Banking Program) OMBP contract, and we do not support its inclusion in the NDAA,” the trades wrote. “Our organizations strongly support credit unions on military bases, because we believe that they are the best source for safe, affordable financial services for our men and women in uniform, but we also believe that Congressional action at this point is premature and legislation amending the FCUA should not be added to the NDAA when it is considered in the full Senate.”
A year ago, the ACU was one of 10 financial trade groups undersigned in a joint letter to Senate leaders opposing a proposed NDAA amendment to expand the Durbin Amendment to apply to bank and credit union interchange fees for institutions serving military members. The trades argued the amendments were “nongermane and would rob military families of their credit card rewards, reduce the availability of safe credit, and undermine the nation’s data security, solely to benefit big-box merchants.” Trade advocates also have expressed opposition to amendments proposed under the Credit Card Competition Act that, similarly, would limit the interchange fee amounts military institutions could collect to recoup service costs.
Trade advocates approve of the FY25 NDAA’s inclusion of language about improving financial literacy for military members. The House passed its version of the proposal in June, also without any financial institution-related amendments, and the industry is hopeful the Senate may approve it before the August recess.