Credit unions continue to pay special year-end bonuses to members. Among them: Pittsford Federal Credit Union, New York, declared its first special member dividend, a 3.3% payout.
The payment, which totals $500,000, will be based on the amount dividends earned on deposits and loan interest paid by each member in 2004. Some 10,000 members received a payment.
In Lenexa, Kan., CommunityAmerica Credit Union deposited $1 million into its members' accounts as part of its Ownership Participation Dividend. During the past nine years, the CU has paid out more than $8.5 million in bonus dividends.
The dividends are rewarded according to the amount of interest paid and earned on accounts over the past year.
The $750-million MECU of Baltimore, Inc. has returned $3.7 million in earned income after expenses to its members in the form of loan interest rebates and extraordinary dividends for the fiscal year 2004.
In Rochester, N.Y., ESL Federal Credit Union said it paid members an "Owners" dividend of $5.5 million for 2004, one of the largest year-end payouts in the country.
Each member's owners dividend was determined by adding the total dividends earned on share accounts to the total interest paid on loans. The total amount was multiplied by 3.325% for last year. More than 191,000 of the credit union's members received payments, with the average payout $200. This is the ninth straight year the $2.7 billion credit union has paid an owners dividend.
The Missouri Credit Union Association reported the following bonus dividends and rebates among their members this year: Electro Savings Credit Union, Maryland Heights, paid a 2% bonus dividend on general shares for December, giving back an additional $46,000; Century Credit Union, St. Louis, distributed a 1% loan interest rebate for a total of about $10,000; District Two Highway Credit Union, Macon, said the credit union paid back almost $35,000 to members; District 7 Highway Credit Union, Joplin, and District 9 Highway Employees Credit Union, Willow Springs, distributed a 5% interest rebate. Division #6 Highway Credit Union, Chesterfield, gave back a 5% bonus dividend and 5% loan rebate to members; United Credit Union, Mexico, gave back more than $156,000 to members, and Vantage Credit Union, Bridgeton, offered "Vantage Rewards" to its members for the second year. The total distribution was more than $377,000.
