WASHINGTON – CUNA made 57 contributions for more than a total of $100,000 to congressional leaders last month as the House geared up for important votes on financial services reform.
Records filed with the Federal Elections Commission show CUNA made contributions to Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. , chairman of the Senate Rules Committee ($1,000); Rep. Chris Van Hollen, chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee ($1,000); Rep. Ed Perlmutter, D-Colo., author of the credit union carve-out from the Consumer Financial Protection Agency ($2,500); Rep. Brad Sherman, D-Calif., another champion of the credit union carve-out ($1,000); Randy Neugebauer, R-Texas, an opponent of the CFPA scheme ($1,000) and James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., a major opponent of the credit union-opposed cramdown provision on bankruptcy ($1,000).
The contributions came as the House was voting to exempt almost all credit unions from examinations by the Consumer Financial Protection Agency and to kill the cramdown proposal that would allow at-risk homeowners to ask a bankruptcy court to amend the terms of their mortgages; and as the Senate is developing its own financial services reform legislation.
Also receiving CUNA contributions last month were Rep. Roy Blunt, the Missouri Republican running for the Senate ($10,000); Rep. Ben Chandler, D-Ky. ($8,000); Rep. John Linder, R-Ga. ($5,000); Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga. ($5,000) and Ovid Lamontagne, the Republican former mayor of Manchester, N.H., who is running for that state’s senate seat.
CUNA also made contributions to several so-called leadership PACs, including the Prairieland PAC, run by Republican Sen. Mike Johanns of Nebraska ($1,000) and Champions for American Freedom PAC, run by Rep. Thaddeus McCotter, R-Mich. ($5,000).
CUNA, which runs one of the most active political action committees on Capitol Hill, made almost $1.2 million in campaign contributions for the first year of the two-year congressional campaign cycle.
