With 20 years having passed since Congress last held a hearing to conduct oversight of the federal tax exemption that credit unions receive, a new survey conducted by Morning Consult on behalf of the American Bankers Association finds that a wide majority of U.S. consumers (67%) believe that Congress should reexamine the tax-exempt status of federal credit unions while only 14% opposed such a hearing. In addition, the survey found that:
- More than three times as many consumers believe credit unions should pay federal taxes just like banks compared to those who feel they should not (58% vs. 18%, respectively).
- Only 17% of Americans are aware that credit unions do not pay federal taxes, while 83% are unaware of credit unions’ tax-exempt status.
- By a 5-to-1 margin (64% vs. 13%), consumers believe that credit unions should have the same disclosure and taxation requirements as other tax-exempt organizations.
- Background: Most tax-exempt organizations must file a special IRS form called Form 990 to ensure basic transparency and compliance with U.S. laws for non-profits. Most tax-exempt organizations also pay taxes on business income unrelated to their tax-exempt mission. Not only do federal credit unions enjoy a federal tax exemption, but they are also exempt from filing Form 990 and from paying unrelated business income tax.
“Since Congress last held a hearing on the credit union tax exemption in 2005, many large credit unions have prioritized growth over serving people of modest means connected through a common bond,” said Rob Nichols, ABA president and CEO. “This new survey shows that consumers agree it’s time for Congress to reexamine federal credit unions in the name of greater transparency and accountability, and to ensure credit unions’ activities align with their original Congressionally mandated mission.”
The survey also reveals how consumers view the regulation of non-banks, including credit unions and fintechs:
- Eight in 10 adults (79%) care if the business that handles their finances is held to the same legal standard for consumer protection as a bank and the vast majority (90%) agree that any business providing bank-like services to consumers should be held to the same standards for consumer protection as a bank.
- By a decisive 7-to-1 margin, consumers said credit union acquisitions of banks should receive the same level of regulatory scrutiny as bank mergers (68% said they should vs 10% who said they shouldn’t).
“It is undeniable there is a growing demand – including from regulators and members of Congress – for more transparency and accountability within the credit union sector,” said Nichols. “A Congressional hearing is long overdue and would give credit unions an opportunity to demonstrate how they are meeting their mission.”
ABA released an accompanying infographic highlighting the survey findings. The data released today is the latest in a series of results gauging U.S. consumers’ preferences and opinions regarding banks and their services. ABA recently released additional survey data showing that Americans highly value their credit cards and oppose policy changes that threaten card reward programs, as well as data revealing that Americans rank banks above other industries for fraud protection, support consistent rules for data sharing, are happy with their bank and banking options, and more. The full results for today’s survey questions are as follows:
When asked “To the best of your knowledge, which of the following best describes how credit unions pay federal taxes?” consumers provided the following answers:
- Credit unions do not pay federal taxes – 17%
- Credit unions pay federal taxes – 26%
- Don’t Know/No Opinion – 57%
When asked “Knowing what you know about the similarities between credit unions and banks, which of the following comes closest to your view, even if neither is exactly right?” consumers provided the following answers:
- Credit unions should pay federal taxes just like banks – 58%
- Credit unions should not pay federal taxes just like banks– 18%
- Don’t Know/No Opinion – 25%
When asked “It has been 20 years since Congress last held a hearing to conduct oversight of the credit union tax exemption. Do you agree or disagree that Congress should reexamine the tax-exempt status of these financial institutions?” consumers provided the following answers:
- Strongly agree – 28%
- Somewhat agree – 39%
- Somewhat disagree – 9%
- Strongly disagree – 5%
- Don’t Know/No Opinion – 19%
When asked “Do you agree or disagree that federal credit unions should have the same disclosure and taxation requirements as other tax-exempt organizations?” consumers provided the following answers:
- Strongly agree – 29%
- Somewhat agree – 35%
- Somewhat disagree – 9%
- Strongly disagree – 4%
- Don’t know – 24%
When asked “Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Any business providing bank-like services (i.e. checking and savings accounts, loans, etc.) to consumers should be held to the same standards for consumer protection that banks are.”consumers provided the following answers:
- Strongly agree – 64%
- Somewhat agree – 26%
- Somewhat disagree – 2%
- Strongly disagree – 1%
- Don’t know – 7%
When asked “Which of the following comes closest to your view, even if neither is exactly right?” consumers provided the following answers:
- I care if the business that handles my finances is held to the same legal standard for consumer protection as a bank – 79%
- I don’t care if the business that handles my finances is held to the same legal standard for consumer protection as a bank – 7%
- Don’t Know/No Opinion – 15%
When asked “Knowing what you know about the similarities between credit unions and banks, which of the following comes closest to your view, even if neither is exactly right?” consumers provided the following answers:
- Credit union acquisitions of banks should receive the same level of regulatory scrutiny as bank mergers. – 68%
- Credit union acquisitions of banks should not receive the same level of regulatory scrutiny as bank mergers. – 10%
- Don’t Know/No Opinion – 22%
About the Survey
This poll was conducted by Morning Consult on behalf of the American Bankers Association from October 1-6, 2025, among a national sample of 4,403 adults split into two representative groups for specific question sets (Split Sample A n=2,173 | Split Sample B n=2,230). The interviews were conducted online and the data were weighted to approximate a target sample of adults based on age, race/ethnicity, gender, educational attainment, and region. Results from the full survey have a margin of error of plus or minus 1 percentage point.