WASHINGTON––Congress is moving into a “critical legislative sprint” in terms of moving legislation ahead of the mid-term election season, according to one CU Hill advocate.
Both the Defense Credit Union Council and America’s Credit Unions are paying particular attention this week to a Thursday hearing on the CLARITY Act (as the CU Daily reported here), as well as the movement of legislation related to tax policy, housing and early versions of the always contentious National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), among other bills.
As the CU Daily has been reporting, the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025, commonly known as the CLARITY Act, is designed to clarify when cryptocurrencies and other digital assets are regulated as securities or commodities, while dividing oversight authority between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
“It is our understanding that this is a get-it-to-the-floor effort, so more action on the bill and multiple amendments will happen then when it is up on the floor,” said Jason Stverak, chief advocacy officer with DCUC,, adding that once again the Defense Council will be joining with others in being wary of any interchange-related language being added to the CLARITY Act.
Strong Opposition from Banks
The CLARITY Act is strongly opposed by the banking industry, specifically over whether stablecoins, digital tokens typically pegged to the U.S. dollar should be allowed to offer yield or rewards. The banking industry has been arguing that if stablecoins begin offering returns similar to savings accounts, customers could move deposits away from traditional banks. That, in turn, could affect lending across the economy, banks have said.
“Our focus has always been and remains clear around ensuring credit union parity with banks in any final framework,” said Stverak. “We cannot be sidelined if Congress builds the future regulatory structure for payments, stable coins and digital assets.”
Asked by the CU Daily during a media call whether DCUC’s position on the CLARITY Act goes beyond having credit union parity with banks in whatever from the final legislation takes, Stverak said that is indeed the “first baseline” so that CUs are not at a “competitive disadvantage moving forward” so that “whether you’re Chase Bank or you’re Black Hills Federal Credit Union you have the ability to provide the same level of access to financial services.
‘Number-One Priority’
Similarly, Greg Mesack, SVP-advocacy with America’s Credit Unions, said the trade groups “number-one priority” with the CLARITY Act had been to ensure credit unions receive parity with any authorities granted to banks.
Beyond that, Mesack said ACU shares bankers’ concerns over allowing crypto companies to pay a yield on any investments, saying worries over deposit flight from banks and credit unions is a “real concern.”
He indicated there are some other issues within the CLARITY Act that America’s Credit Unions is monitoring, as well.
The Biggest Thing
But the biggest thing overall, Mesack said, is that credit unions are included, as not being a part of the CLARITY Act would have been “disastrous.”
“(This) bill started in the Senate and the initial version did not include credit unions at all, and through our work with the committee…credit unions are on equal footing with the banks and they’re able to offer the same products and services to their members,” said Greg Mesack. “This is really big for ensuring credit unions have a place in the future of financial services.”
America’s Credit Union has remained in touch with the offices of the members of the Senate Banking Committee, according toesack, who expects the bill to pass along a party line vote.
“We’ll continue working as they try to find time on the Senate floor to make this bipartisan and get something through,” he said.
Keeping an Eye on the ROAD
Separately, Stverak said DCUC expects to see movement on the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act in the next few weeks, which has already passed in the Senate and advanced in the House and where, again, the trade group will be watching for any amendments.
Getting SMART
America’s Credit Unions expects the SMART Act (Supervisory Modifications for Appropriate Risk-Based Testing) to be voted on on Tuesday. That legislation has championed by Rep. William Timmons (R-SC) and Rep. Bill Foster (D-IL) and Mesack said America’s Credit Unions and the Carolinas Credit Union League have been actively working with the Timmons to move the bill. It passed the House Financial Services Committee last July with a 53-1 vote.
A Bill to Trust
America’s CUs also he House is set to vote on the Tailored Regulatory Updates for Supervisory Testing (TRUST) Act of 2025 (H.R 4478), which would raise the consolidated asset threshold for banks to qualify for an 18-month examination cycle.
“The NCUA already possesses the authority to modify the frequency of examination cycle thresholds for well-managed credit unions and does not need a statutory change to do so. America’s Credit Unions hopes that if this legislation is advanced by Congress, that Congress would use its oversight capacity to urge the NCUA to set its examination cycle thresholds equal to those of banks under this legislation,” the trade group said in a letter.
