The credit union trade associations continue to gin up their troops to lobby Congress for the separate regulatory relief bills. But privately, the lobbyists concede that the chances of either bill getting passed before the end of Congress this year are doubtful.
The overall regulatory relief bill, which would address the needs of banks and thrifts, as well as credit unions, passed the House easily two weeks ago, but still has not surfaced in the Senate.
The shortness of this year's congressional calendar, due to this fall's election, makes it questionable whether a bill will make it through the Senate Banking Committee, then through the full Senate, in time to have it reconciled with the House bill.
And the separate credit union reg relief bill, called the CU Regulatory Improvement Act, or CURIA, has yet to be reviewed in the House and has not even been entertained in the Senate. This makes it highly unlikely it will be passed this Congress, according to credit union lobbyists.
Still, the work on both bills gives the issue momentum when the new Congress returns next year. Of course, the bills will have to be reintroduced and the process begun all over again.
