Grassroots Will Be Key To Any CU Challenge

Since two-thirds of Tennessee's credit unions are state chartered, we must anticipate the efforts of bank trade associations to advance the notion of credit union taxation. Our Commissioner of Financial Institutions, who regulates banks and credit unions, has said on numerous occasions that this administration is not seeking to tax the income of credit unions. He refers to the issue as one to be resolved in Washington, not Tennessee. We remain watchful while we work on a large number of other issues that affect the operations of credit unions in Tennessee, regardless of charter. Our approach to the state legislature is that any threat of taxation will be defeated by a strong grassroots organization. In the fourth quarter of 2003, the league arranged and credit unions hosted 49 separate meetings with state legislators on key committees. Each of these meetings took place in a credit union with a significant membership in that district according to CUNA's Project Zip Code.