Opening ceremony during the 2023 CUNA GAC in Washington, D.C.
The signs and banners exclaiming "CUNA GAC" and "#CUNAGAC" are gone. The event that for years excluded NAFCU leadership and staff is set to open its doors next week in Washington, D.C. to a new Governmental Affairs Conference hosted by a newly-merged organization with new leadership and a new look.
This year's Governmental Affairs Conference, hosted by America's Credit Unions from March 3-7, is simply named GAC 2024. According to trade group officials, the event will be an evolution of GACs past and attempt to strike a tone "with a unified voice for the first time" after CUNA and NAFCU officially merged at the beginning of the year.
America's Credit Unions Chief Association Services Officer Todd Spiczenski said, "Every year is unique, but this year feels like it's taken on a bigger evolution. We're building on the foundation of what our members love about GAC. Whether you're a savvy veteran or a newbie, you're going to have an experience like no other. You're going to see some new and different things."
Todd Spiczenski One new change is the emcee duties for the event will be taken on by Chief Administrative Officer Mia Perez from the Raleigh, N.C.-based Coastal Credit Union ($4.9 billion in assets, 331,458 members). In a video posted on the GAC's website, Perez said, "I am so excited to reconvene with all of my friends and colleagues and the advocates in our industry and really to be able to take our artistry to the next level and see you all there. It's going to be an amazing time. And I'm just really looking forward to that."
According to a statement from the trade group, officials expect to break attendance records for this year's conference. Typically, the group reports roughly 6,000 attendees for GAC.
"I'm excited that we're tracking an even stronger registration rate," Spiczenski said. "I think part of it is the power of two associations coming together to create America's Credit Unions. There's an energy and excitement around it. Our credit unions overwhelmingly supported that merger, and now they want to see the fruits of the labor: 'OK, what do you have for us?' We're going to be ready to show them."
CUNA and NAFCU officials spent much of 2023 traveling the country to gain support for the membership vote to approve the merger. Once voting ended in November, of those who voted, 94% of CUNA members and 86% of NAFCU members voted in favor of the merger.
CU Times will begin GAC coverage next week. For a full listing of the GAC 2024 schedule, click here.
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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.
