WASHINGTON–With much of the federal government still shutdown due to a funding impasse, and with House members in their home districts and the Senate in session, America’s Credit Unions has sent a letter to all 535 members of Congress outlining what credit unions are prepared to do to help members who may miss paychecks.
“Credit unions can make a real difference to your constituents and communities affected by the shutdown, and we can provide real stories of impact that are already underway,” wrote America’s Credit Unions President and CEO Jim Nussle, who shared the various resources credit unions are offering, including:
- Financial counseling “that include reduced or no interest payroll advances, 0% interest loans, deferred payments, and other emergency options.”
- Loan modifications for existing loans to avoid incurring additional fees, whether it’s skip-a-payment, reduced interest on loans, loan modifications, and more; and
- Helping new members in their specific fields of membership, with potential members encouraged to reach out to credit unions they may be eligible to join to access services and financial guidance.
America’s Credit Unions also has a Government Shutdown Assistance webpage contains resources and an online survey for credit unions providing government shutdown-related outreach and services.
America’s Credit unions is also encouraging credit unions to fill out a survey detailing their shutdown assistance efforts.
Meetings at Home
Meanwhile, the trade group said numerous credit unions have been meeting with members of Congress, including:
- Ascentra Credit Union, which met with Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) at its Bettendorf headquarters. “We met with Senator Ernst and shared Ascentra’s history and mission, how listening to, caring about, and doing what’s right by our members is at the heart of our service commitment as we celebrate our 75-year anniversary said Matthew De Bisschop, SVP of human resources and government affairs at Ascentra, said in a statement. “We were born out of blue-collar aluminum workers at ALCOA not having access to credit and coming together to borrow and save with one another as a financial cooperative. We operate in the same fashion 75 years later, serving the underserved as a CDFI Credit Union and being committed to the philosophy of people helping people. Senator Ernst was very receptive and as we gave her a tour, she engaged our staff and asked great questions about our history and operations.”
Upcoming Visits
America’s Credit Unions said Iowa credit unions are scheduled to travel to Washington, this week to meet with legislators on Capitol Hill, part of visits from multiple leagues and credit unions scheduled for the fall. The Carolinas Credit Union Association, CrossState Credit Union Association, Cornerstone League, Illinois Credit Union League, and Association of Vermont Credit Unions are among the leagues scheduled to take credit unions from their states to Washington in the coming weeks.
Representatives from USF Credit Union, Space Coast Credit Union, Orlando Federal Credit Union, Suncoast Credit Union, VyStar Credit Union, and Flagler Credit Union met with Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) in Washington late last month.
