U.S. Treasury Department building in Washington, D.C. (Source: dashingstock/Shutterstock)
Concerned about personal data collection, unreasonably burdensome reporting requirements and a poor record of data security by the IRS, numerous trade organizations jointly sent a letter to lawmakers to oppose a proposal by the Treasury Department that would require financial institutions to report gross inflows and outflows of all business and personal accounts.
CUNA, NAFCU and nearly 40 other organizations sent a letter on Wednesday asking congressional leaders for help with this new proposal by Treasury.
"We object to the broad, untargeted nature of the Treasury proposal. Collection of comprehensive financial account data to determine tax liability must be narrowly targeted," the letter stated. "Treasury's indiscriminate, blanket data collection would be unsupported by any reasonable suspicion of tax evasion."
According to the details of the proposal, it would require financial institutions to report the inflows and outflows of personal and business accounts, as well as transfers between accounts of the same owner, if it is more than $600 per year.
The letter argued that use of personal financial data must be rigorously justified by the Treasury Department and the IRS. "Moreover, we are concerned about the IRS's poor record of data security, which exposes taxpayers' data, compromises their privacy and makes them vulnerable to identity theft. In today's environment, privacy and enhanced security of taxpayer data should take precedence over the mass collection of new data."
"Further, we fear that new, intrusive account reporting would undermine the important policy goal of reducing the unbanked population," it said, adding, "Indiscriminate sharing of financial account data with the IRS will only increase the challenge of reducing the unbanked population."
NAFCU and CUNA have both indicated that their organizations will continue monitoring the progress of discussions surrounding the proposal and advocate against any new regulatory burdens it may have on credit unions.
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
Michael Ogden
Editor-in-Chief at CU Times. To connect, email at [email protected]. As Editor-in-Chief of CU Times since 2016, Michael Ogden has led the editorial team in all aspects of content strategy and execution, including the creation of the publication’s exclusive and proprietary research database of the credit union industry’s economic landscape. Under Michael’s leadership, CU Times has successfully shifted to an all-digital editorial product with new focuses on the payments, fraud, lending and regulatory beats. Most recently, he introduced a data-focused editorial product for subscribers that breaks down credit union issues into hard data, allowing for a deeper and more factual narrative for readers. In 2024, he launched the "Shared Accounts With CU Times" podcast, which offers a fresh, inside-the-newsroom perspective through interviews with leaders from the credit union industry and the regulatory world. He dives into pressing credit union issues, while revealing the personalities working behind-the-scenes to push the credit union world forward. His background includes years as a radio and TV anchor/reporter and a public relations and digital/social media manager, where he covered the food and music industries, as well as cooperatives and credit unions. Over the years, he has launched numerous exclusive video and podcast series, including a successful series of interactive backstage interviews with musicians at music festivals, showcasing his social media and live streaming production skills.
