BROOKLYN, N.Y. – Polish and Slavish FCU yesterday said it has signed with First Lenders Data’s FirstClose unit to provide it with bundled mortgage settlement services.

NEW CASTLE, Penn. – Greater New Castle FCU on Tuesday said it has signed with TRC Interactive to provide it with online training services for employees.

LYNN, Mass. – Brotherhood CU yesterday said it is partnering with the Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless to help 29 local households pay for heating costs during February.

APPLE VALLEY, Minn. – Wings Financial FCU continues to add to expand its affinity agreements, yesterday announcing a deal with the Organization of Black Airline Pilots.

WASHINGTON – In what is expected to be a first step to reforms, the House Financial Services Committee yesterday scheduled a hearing for next week to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Community Reinvestment Act, the law that requires that banks and thrifts set out a plan to provide services to communities they serve and that regulators monitor that plan.

TALLAHASEE, Fla. – Starting today, participants in Credit Union 24 will have access to more than 45,000 ATMs in all 50 states surcharge free.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – An employee at Beacon Community CU was charged with stealing the personal account information of dozens of members, then obtaining credit cards in their names to tap into their accounts.

DENVER – Public Service CU, which recently acquired the assets of failed Norlarco CU, yesterday named Bob Hoel, the former director of the Filene Research Institute and former chairman of the Norlarco board, to its board to represent the 42,000 Norlarco members who now are part of the $640 million credit union.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – NCUA yesterday said it has added full-time examiners and is conducting additional supervision to some credit unions in the face of huge losses being reported for 2007.

OMAHA, Neb. – TD AMERITRADE Holding Corporation here and Fiserv, Inc., Brookville, Wis., announced that TD AMERITRADE has completed its purchase of Fiserv’s Investment Support Services (ISS) business for approximately $225 million in cash plus the amount of acquired regulatory capital.

WASHINGTON–On the heels of Credit Union Journal’s ongoing special report on diversity in the credit union movement, U.S. Rep. Melvin L. Watt (D-NC), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, said his subcommittee will hold a hearing on diversity in the financial services industry.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Fidelity National Information Services, Inc. (FIS) has entered into a relationship with Digital Insight through which DI will begin offering FIS' Premium Bill Pay and Presentment solution to its clients.

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The last of four suspects charged in a scheme to plant pipe bombs at a school in order to create a diversion during a credit union robbery has been convicted for his role in the scheme.

OLYMPIA, Wash. – The Washington Credit Union League is charging this state’s bankers are more interested in commercial customers than the everyday working person.

WASHINGTON – Most consumers who pay federal taxes with debit cards this year will be charged less than in the past now that both of the companies authorized to process such payments are routing them as PIN-less debit transactions.

WASHINGTON – The nation’s banks believe the United States is entering a recession and are pessimistic about Washington’s plans to get the economy back on track.

WASHINGTON – CUNA has established a “Due Diligence Task Force” to explore a variety of due-diligence responsibilities, in particular those related to third-party vendors.

WASHINGTON – The president is asking for a $28.6 million appropriation for the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund, a 58.2% slashing of the fund from last year’s appropriation of more than $58 million.

NEW YORK – Credit rating agency Fitch, Inc. is forecasting that credit card charge-offs will increase by at least 35% during 2008 and that auto loans losses will increase by at least 50%.

In one of the biggest credit union losses ever, Eastern Financial Florida Credit Union in Miramar reported a fourth-quarter loss of $49.5 million.