CUNA joined trade associations representing virtually all credit unions and banks—including those primarily serving the military—in a joint statement strongly opposing the effort by Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., to derail the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) unless he receives consideration for his interchange bill as an amendment. The Senate is considering the NDAA this week.

 “The financial services industry stands united in opposition to Senator Marshall’s effort to hold up funding for our military in order to gift a massive government handout to Walmart, Target, and other big-box retailers. Senator Marshall’s credit card routing legislation has no relevance to defense spending whatsoever. We call on Senator Marshall to promptly abandon his effort to use the NDAA to secure government favors for big-box retailers at the expense of consumers, small businesses, and small financial institutions.”

CUNA and Leagues issued an action alert last week calling on stakeholders to contact their senators and oppose the interchange amendment to the NDAA.

CUNA also joined organizations earlier this month in a letter to Congressional leaders strongly opposing attaching the bill to the NDAA, noting the “non-germane amendments will rob military families of their credit card rewards, reduce the availability of safe credit, and undermine the nation’s data security.”