National CU Foundation has REAL Solutions for Serving the Underserved

WASHINGTON – The National CU Foundation took over management of the REAL Solutions Program yesterday in anticipation of a nationwide roll-out of the program aimed at delivering new products and services to the underserved. In the first quarter of the new year dozens of credit unions in 12 new states are expected to embrace the program that has helped credit unions in Wisconsin, Ohio and Maryland deliver innovative payday loan, check cashing, home ownership and financial education initiatives. Over the next three years the Foundation, which took the program over from the Filene Research Institute, plans to expand REAL Solutions to as many as 2,000 credit unions in 33 states. To facilitate the changeover, REAL Solutions program director Lois Kitsch and program administrator Jeff Purvis have transferred from Filene to become employees of the Foundation and they are recruiting a team of field coaches who will work with leagues to help credit unions attract new members in their states. The national roll-out comes as credit unions are coming under increasing pressure from Congress to expand their services to the underserved and to document their service. A debate over whether credit unions should be monitored for the service to the underserved, perhaps under the Community Reinvestment Act, is expected to take place during the debate over the CU Regulatory Improvements Act, which will be introduced in the new Congress over the next few months.