After almost 10 years covering credit union news, sometimes itseems the same topics come up over and over. Not this week, as newindustry issues graced the front page of our paper.

For example, credit unions dodged a bullet Oct. 17 when theywoke up to news that Congress agreed on a plan to avoid a federaldebt default and end the government shutdown. As Credit UnionTimes reported on page 1 this week (DebtDeal Spares Credit Unions), had the default occurred, itcould have devalued the U.S. Treasury securities most consider tobe gold standard investments.

As a popular YouTube video says, ain't nobody got time forthat.

According to the NCUA, as of Sept. 30, Treasury securitiesrepresent $6 billion in federally insured credit union assets.

Granted, that's less than 1% of total industry assets, but itcould have thrown a wrench in credit union books as they approachyear-end, typically crunch time to shore up financials.

Thankfully, an end to the impasse means credit unions thatextended federal pay to members will get their money back soon. Ingeneral, that backpay will come in the next pay period, althoughhow that will all play out will vary from agency to agency.

For the price of two-week interest-free loans, credit unionspicked up some great press and good will among members. However, Idoubt anyone wants to see this come up again in February, even ifit means federal employees flock to credit unions knowing they area preferable source of emergency funds.

Another topics that was news to me this week was a survey that revealed only 18% of member households placea strong trust in their credit union's financial advisers. Thosesame households overwhelming trust credit unions for basicfinancial services products, but when it comes to retirementplanning and other important investment decisions, credit unionsstill have a reputation for being unsophisticated.

This flies in the face of bankers' claims that credit unions,especially big ones, are essentially no different from banks. Inthe eyes of consumers, they're not. And not in a good way. Itbrings to mind the never-ending effort to convince members thatyes, credit unions do offer mortgages, and yes, they arecompetitive and convenient.

If I ran a credit union that offered investment services, I'dhave to wonder if the effort is even worth it. By the time youcommit to making investment services a core product and spendingconsidering money on marketing, as experts recommended in thestory, non-interest income gained might be a wash.

Thankfully, traditional products like new and used auto loansare picking up, and not a moment too soon for credit unionsstruggling to earn revenue as they face a risk-based capital rulethat is expected from the NCUA by year end.

We all know the only way most credit unions can build capital isthrough retained earnings, which have been hard to come by latelyfor all but the largest of credit unions.

The silver lining to the risk-based capital rule is that itmight give supplemental capital legislation the push it needs onCapitol Hill. Last Congress, the bill sponsored by Rep. Peter King(R-N.Y.) never made it out of committee although it had generated45 co-sponsors. King reintroduced the bill in February and it hasalready attracted the same number of co-sponsors, with more than ayear before the current Congress ends.

House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling(R-Texas) is not currently a co-sponsor, nor is Vice Chairman GaryMiller (R-Calif.), which probably means the the bill isn't at thetop of the committee's priority list. However, Chairman EmeritusSpencer Bachus (R-Ala.) is a co-sponsor, and make no mistake:Bachus still has pull in the financial services arena.

Other members of the committee have also inked their support,including Ranking Member Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) and Gregory Meeks(D-N.Y.), who is the financial institution subcommittee's rankingmember.

I predict this bill will pick up steam after the NCUA proposesits risk-based capital rule, which is sure to draw howls of protestfrom the banking lobby. However, I'd imagine Congress is far moreinfluenced by the NCUA's support of supplemental capital than it isby the same old Chicken Little message from bankers when it comesto credit unions encroaching on their market share.

Let's hope the industry can score a win on this one.