Utah CU Foe Wastes No Time In NewLegislature

SALT LAKE CITY - (01/10/05) -- Credit union opponents started thenew legislative session off last week with their much-anticipatedanti-credit union initiative calling on Congress to let the statestax federally chartered credit unions. House Joint Resolution 1,sponsored by House Majority Leader Jeff Alexander, sponsor of theunsuccessful 2003 bid to tax large state chartered credit unions,asks Congress to weigh in on the decades-long fight between creditunions and banks in this state. The resolution is based on ameasure endorsed by the legislature's Financial Institutions TaskForce and urges Congress to 'take appropriate action' regarding theregulation of credit unions; allow individual states to determinewhich state and local taxes should apply to all financialinstitutions within their borders; and provide a 'reasoned'explanation if Congress dcides to keep the current tax structure inplace. Alexander said the intention of the resolution is to haveCongress review NCUA's regulatory activity, especially in light ofthe recent court ruling invalidating the agency's broad communitycharters for four Utah credit unions and to determine whetherstates should be able to govern their own taxing authority. Thenon-binding resolution must be approved by both chambers of thestate legislature.