Ways and Means Committee advances reconciliation bill, securing credit union tax status

May 15, 2025

The House Ways and Means Committee advanced its portion of budget reconciliation Wednesday morning, securing the credit union tax status after months of relentless advocacy from America’s Credit Unions, leagues, credit unions, and members.

The committee released the full text of the bill Monday, making no changes to the credit union tax status, and did not accept any amendments that would affect credit unions.

“Thank you to Chairman Jason Smith and the House Ways and Means Committee for recognizing the immense value credit unions have on communities and securing the credit union tax status,” said America’s Credit Unions President/CEO Jim Nussle. “This is a major victory for 142 million hardworking American families and small businesses who rely on credit unions, as it allows these community-first institutions to continue to serve Main Street America without limitation. America’s Credit Unions remains committed to protecting its members from tax hikes that will hurt them and the U.S. economy.”

In a webinar discussing the advocacy strategy and next steps following the markup on Wednesday, Nussle said that despite this week's important victory, the tax fight isn’t over.

“The risk is still out there, I want to be clear. The bill has passed the Ways and Means Committee now, meaning we were able to stay out of the tax bill that is moving through Congress. Congress is going to now compile that bill in the House and try and pass it by Memorial Day, and then this whole process goes over to the Senate,” he said. “We have to stay out of anything that is moving through the Senate. We feel pretty good about that right now, but we have to continue to maintain a ‘stay out’ strategy.”

Patrick Conway, American Association of Credit Union Leagues chair and CrossState Credit Union Association President/CEO, said on the webinar that this week’s success is the result of a unified voice across the entire movement.

“I’ve never seen a time when our credit union leaders have been so willing to engage their own memberships, their own teams, and their own communities in the joint advocacy work that leagues across the nation have done with America’s Credit Unions,” Conway said. “Our credit union leaders have stepped up in a huge way for this first victory at the committee level, but there’s more work to be done.”

Resources are available to keep up the campaign momentum on the Don’t Tax My Credit Union website, and on America’s Credit Unions website, which includes a social media toolkit, press kit, and more.

In advance of the markup, America’s Credit Unions wrote in support of the bill to the Ways and Means Committee, urging members to reject any potential amendments that would harm credit unions, thanking the committee for protecting the tax status, and supporting provisions that allow:

  • Credit unions to serve as permissible account holders for the “Money for Growth and Advancement” accounts established in the bill to promote savings and investing; and
  • Car buyers to deduct interest paid on auto loans for vehicles assembled in the U.S.

The bill now heads to the House Budget Committee, where it will assemble sections from each House committee into a single bill that then goes to the House floor. It is expected to meet Friday to assemble the bill.

America's Credit Unions’ tax advocacy strategy, executed in partnership with leagues, dates back to last summer, when they identified credit union champions for support in the 2024 election cycle, engaged those members from the first day of the 119th Congress, and, up to this point, has included:

  • Meeting with every Republican member of the House Ways & Means Committee, including Chairman Jason Smith several times;
  • Meeting with the White House National Economic Council, Office of Management and Budget, and Treasury Department (5x);
  • Meeting with Senate Majority Leader John Thune, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo, and House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill;
  • Generating more than 771,000 grassroots letters directly to lawmakers;
  • Contacting all 535 Congressional offices with key data on the credit union difference;
  • Placing several op-eds and letters to the editor at the national and local level, to raise awareness of credit unions' impact on their members and communities;
  • Commissioning an independent economic study on the national and consumer benefits of the credit union tax status; and
  • Launching a digital ad campaign targeting key tax writers and congressional leaders that has generated over 73 million ad impressions and engaged over 100,000 activists.

America’s Credit Unions will continue to lead the industry’s unified advocacy efforts to ensure the credit union tax status remains secured in the final bill signed by the president.