The California and Nevada Credit Union Leagues is excited to announce it has filled its top federal advocacy position for representing California and Nevada credit unions at the national level in Washington, D.C. Stephanie Cuevas will serve as senior vice president of federal government affairs.
“We made this goal our top priority as we transitioned into 2023,” said Diana Dykstra, president and CEO of the Leagues. “Credit unions need an astute and experienced professional representing their interests within local districts and on Capitol Hill. We approached this task with our credit unions and their members in mind as a new Congress came into session earlier this year and the direction of federal policies on the legislative and regulatory fronts remain paramount to the operation of all credit unions across California and Nevada.”
Starting earlier this week (March 13), Cuevas is a skilled advocate with a proven track record of advancing legislative priorities at the local, state, and federal levels. With more than 10 years of experience in community outreach and policy development, she understands the importance of effective advocacy to influence decisionmakers. She is dedicated to utilizing her skills to enact policies that will defend and advance the cause of credit unions.
Cuevas was most recently senior government affairs representative for the Lakewood, CA-based Water Replenishment District (WRD), the largest groundwater agency by population in the state of California that manages and protects local groundwater resources for 4 million Southern California residents. She managed communications and outreach to 236 elected officials and their staff.
Before joining WRD, she specialized in the federal legislative process as she worked in the House of Representatives for eight years. During her career on Capitol Hill, Cuevas served Reps. Linda Sánchez (D-CA) and Pete Aguilar (D-CA).
In Aguilar’s office, she managed the policy agenda and leveraged his position on the House Appropriations Committee to bring federal dollars back to California. One of credit unions’ greatest achievements that Cuevas helped champion was the congressman’s successful passage of an amendment to the 2018 fiscal year funding bill that protected the funding structure of the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA). If the amendment had not passed, the NCUA would have been subjected to the discretionary appropriations process, which may have resulted in budget cuts to the NCUA and increased costs for credit unions.
“We are thrilled to have someone with Stephanie’s experience and connections on Capitol Hill representing our credit unions and leading our efforts in Congress,” Dykstra said. “We are also honored to continue our commitment to deliver leading-advocacy results for you and your credit union.”
