The Credit Union National Association's Government Affairs Conference (GAC) kicked off on Sunday. The GAC runs from February 21 thru February 25.
It is estimated that nearly 5,000 individuals will attend the GAC.
Credit union officials from around the country are descending on Washington, D.C. to lobby Congress about preserving the credit union industry's tax exemption, which is estimated to cost almost $27 billion over the next decade, and for greater powers, such as expanded business lending authority.
In addition, officials from federal credit unions attending the GAC are exempt from state and local taxes assessed to room charges, as long as the final payment is made by a federal credit union-issued check, share draft or credit card.
The hotel occupancy tax rate in Washington, D.C. is 14.5 percent. The price for a room per night at official GAC hotels ranges from a low of $265 to a high of $329. This means that each night the District of Columbia could lose between $38.43 and $47.71 in occupancy tax revenue per room.
It is outrageous that officials from federal credit unions can come to Washington to lobby Congress about preserving their tax exemption, while avoiding paying local hotel taxes.
Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump are living proof that the American people know that Congress and DC is corrupted.
ReplyDeleteCongress LOVES the bank and credit union "war". They benefit hugely by doing NOTHING about it.
ABA, CUNA, NAFCU, ICBA grease Congress and their collective constituents (banks and cus) lose.
American tax payers foot the bill for the collective dysfunction and lose.
Outrageous?
Yes.
Congress is outrageously awful.
Gotta love those credit unions that disaffiliated.
They spoke for their members.
If a legal tax break, then absolutely right and fair to take it. Banks take advantage of every legal tax break (including Sub S corporations) and that is 100% fair and right. Of course, if CUs ever got taxed, those legal tax avoidance strategies would be employed to the maximum of the law/regulation.
ReplyDeleteYou are right that the exemption from the hotel occupancy tax is legal. But this exemption is still outrageous.
ReplyDeleteSince federal credit union are 501(c)(1) corporations chartered by Congress/Federal Government, FCUs get the tax exemption like any government traveler. Now working for a state credit union, I see how much I saved my FCU member-owners when I traveled.
DeleteIf you really want to save your members money then disaffiliate from Nafcu, CUNA and leagues. Stop wasting their money for a 0 ROI.
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