Small Business Rep Urges Credit Unions to Join Thousands of Business Owners in Opposing Proposed IRS Reporting Provision

 OK Folks, this isn't just about saving small businesses anymore. As you know, I am an NFIB rep and register business owners as members of the nation's largest advocacy group for small businesses, The National Federation of Independent Business. 

This is about your privacy as an American citizen. This is about government overreach and what you can do about it. 

What I am sharing today does not only affect small business owners but it now affects you as a consumer, customer, and employee. 

I went online to check my balance in my credit union and saw this message: 

TELL CONGRESS TO OPPOSE NEW IRS REPORTING PROVISIONS

 

As Congress considers critical new infrastructure spending, policymakers are eying unconventional sources of revenue to fund their plans. One proposal under consideration would require credit unions and other financial institutions to report to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) how much money has gone into and out of accounts holding more than $600. 

This unprecedented access to consumers’ personal financial data raises several alarms. 

• This proposal would violate consumers’ personal privacy by forcing credit unions and banks to provide the government with information that does not reflect taxable activity.
• Financial institutions—particularly those in rural and low-income communities—would face unnecessary and expensive regulatory hurdles that could make it untenable to serve those consumers already left behind by Wall Street banks.  
• The government relies on decades old data systems to store and secure IRS information. These systems have already been compromised in recent years, and the addition of this type of data only increases the likelihood of a future breach.

As negotiations around the $3.5 trillion infrastructure package heat up, the Administration has proposed a new IRS reporting provision that requires financial institutions to report new account holder information. America’s credit unions do not support this additional reporting requirement. This provision would dramatically increase the regulatory burden for financial institutions, undermine the privacy of consumers, and trigger significant data security concerns. All financial institutions currently report to the IRS information related to actual taxable events for members. This new proposal would result in banks and credit unions turning over to the IRS sensitive account details that in and of themselves do not constitute taxable events. This would leave the IRS with a massive trove of personal financial data that would be used in a manner that is not detailed in the proposal and leaves the data vulnerable to a cyber-attack.

Here's what you can do. 

If you are the CEO or other official of a credit union, call me and join NFIB. You'll then be joining an army of small business owners who share your same concerns and an organization that will fight for you, meaning that you'll have a very (VERY) strong voice at your state capital (we're in all 50 states) and at Washington D.C. 

If you are a small business owner. call me and join NFIB (for all the same reasons). 

If you've ever owned a small business and you are retired, call me and join NFIB (we have a special membership rate for you and can really use your vote). 

If you work for a small business owner, THIS AFFECTS YOU, YOUR MONEY, AND YOUR PRIVACY. Please encourage them to JOIN NFIB. 

Do you see that pattern here? Joining NFIB is the answer. 

It doesn't cost anything but a few minutes to tell Congress that you Oppose this harmful, privacy-invasive tactic here: https://www.votervoice.net/mobile/CUNA/campaigns/87852/respond