WASHINGTON — The Defense Credit Union Council is urging Rep. Bill Foster (D-IL) to ensure a proposed study of financial oversight technology produces measurable benefits for credit unions, particularly smaller institutions, without adding unnecessary regulatory burdens.
The council said it is reserving judgment on the Real-Time Regulatory Study Act of 2026 pending further review and member input. In a letter from Chief Advocacy Officer Jason Stverak, DCUC thanked Foster for accepting its earlier recommendation to study the issues and offered to work with his office.
“We thank Congressman Foster for accepting DCUC’s recommendation, raised in our previous letters, to study these issues,” Stverak said. “We welcome his willingness to consider our input and will work with his office to protect small credit unions from needless regulatory burdens.”
According to DCUC, Foster’s discussion draft would direct the Federal Reserve, in coordination with other regulators, to develop and test open-source demonstration software exploring improvements in regulatory reporting, risk management, liquidity access and other financial functions.
Protections Included
The Defense Council said the draft includes protections against mandatory software adoption and examination or supervisory consequences for institutions that participate in development and testing or decline to do so. It also limits testing to test environments using synthetic data or historical data that may legally be used, DCUC said.
DCUC urged lawmakers to preserve those safeguards as discussions continue.
“For defense credit unions, regulatory costs have a direct connection to member service,” said Anthony Hernandez, DCUC’s president and CEO. “Unnecessary expenses leave fewer resources for affordable loans, financial counseling, and support during deployments and relocations. We welcome a constructive discussion about modernization that strengthens financial protection and preserves credit unions’ capacity to serve service members, veterans, and their families.”
DCUC cautioned that open-source software can still carry costs for connecting existing systems, preparing and validating data, cybersecurity, vendor services, staff training and maintenance.
One Requirement Welcomed
DCUC welcomed the draft’s requirement to examine costs and potential savings but urged a realistic assessment of the resources available to small credit unions.
“Faster reporting alone does not establish that compliance has become more efficient,” Stverak said. “We want meaningful savings and clear protections against duplicative reporting or informal pressure to replace systems that already work.”
DCUC said the letter builds on its April 28, 2025, correspondence to Foster and Rep. Andy Barr, June 2026 comments on modernizing anti-money-laundering requirements and September 2026 recommendations to simplify Bank Secrecy Act reporting.
Across those efforts, the council said it has advocated oversight tailored to an institution’s size, complexity and risk.
