The 2016 presidential election has already stirred up a lot of interest and there are still 10 months until election day. The catty remarks between candidates such as Hillary Clinton, Jeb Bush, and Donald Trump are entertaining, but the matter of who is elected as President is a serious matter for credit unions. The President of the United States has the power to appoint the head of the CFPB and NCUA, and during this next presidential term, whoever is elected will have the power to appoint three new NCUA board members. It is too early in the election process for candidates to reveal their views on issues that relate to credit union operations. It is not until the primary elections when the candidates’ views on these issues will be discussed.
In the past, U.S. citizens have made their voting decision based on the state of the economy, more than any other factor. Economist have found that the overall level of the economy or unemployment rate do not matter as much as the rate of change to the economy to voters. Economists predict that voters will have an optimistic outlook on the economy during the 2016 election. Here are what leading economic forecasters had to say will be the key economic variables for the 2016 election:
-Hourly wages are at a high growth rate of 2.8 percent
-Interest rates, inflation, and gasoline prices will be a bit higher, but still low for historic standards
-Unemployment will be at its lowest since the 2000 election
-There is only a 25% chance of an economic boom — defined as a G.D.P. growth greater than 3 percent for a year.
Perhaps more relevant to the credit union industry regarding legislative issues is the election of congressional officials. Congress handles most of the issues related to credit unions, such as passing the regulations that affect credit unions in areas such as forms and other credit union operational issues.
The credit union presence is stronger today than ever before, with member numbers and assets at record highs. It is important to have credit union support from both the executive and legislative branches, meaning there needs to be bipartisan support to get important credit union legislation passed.
To read similar articles please visit Oak Tree Business Systems, Inc. at www.oaktreebiz.com to view our complete Winter 2016 Advantage – A Look Into 2016.