EL PASO, Texas – West Texas CU said it paid its members an interest rebate and bonus dividend last month to celebrate a successful 2007–a payment totaling $745,000.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – New Mexico Educators FCU said it is making a "Members Reward" payment for the third straight year–this one totaling $1.4 million.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – State chartered credit unions have continued to increase their non-traditional mortgage lending–the kind being singled out in the ongoing subprime mortgage crisis, according to a new study released by the state Department of Financial Institutions.

GROVEPORT, Ohio – Fast-growing First Service FCU ended the year eyeing new markets with the purchase of two branches from Huntington Bancshares.

HARRISBURG, Pa. – The credit union industry and the bankers will find themselves in familiar territory to start the New Year Friday when a federal court here is scheduled to hear the banks’ challenge of three sprawling community charters awarded by NCUA to Pennsylvania credit unions.

Most members of state-chartered credit unions are low- and middle-income workers, according to a study recently released by the National Association of State Credit Union Supervisors.

ARLINGTON, Va.–NAFCU is projecting the Fed will cut short-term interest rates again “in the near future” as the result of current economic conditions, particularly in the housing market.

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn.–Chattanooga Area Schools FCU said it will pay a bonus dividend of $750,000 to its 9,000 members.

SANTA ROSA, Calif.–Community First Credit Union here has become the fifth credit union to join Credit Union Shared Resources, a CUSO aimed at lowering costs related to offering online services.

WASHINGTON–The problems in residential mortgages are not yet showing up in commercial real estate, with the exception of slight increases expected in 2008 in real estate vacancies in some markets, according to the COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE OUTLOOK of the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

NEW YORK–Some trends are developing in the way the nation’s biggest banks have begun to work out new forbearance and refinance agreements with borrowers facing adjustable-rate mortgage resets that will lead to higher payments many of the borrowers will be unable to make.

LAKEWOOD, Colo. – Jeffco Credit Union temporarily shut down its online banking service late last week following what it described as “multiple phishing attempts” targeting the credit union’s members.

VANCOUVER, Wash. — The Vancouver Police Department conducted SWAT training yesterday at the site of the former Citizens Service Center in downtown Vancouver.

MANCHESTER, N.H.–GOP Presidential candidate Mitt Romney gave a speech at America’s Credit Union Museum yesterday.

HARRISBURG, Penn.–A suspect in the attempted robbery of Blue Chip FCU here was nabbed after he stepped into a nearby convenience store to grab a beverage.

HARAHAN, Louis.–Carolyn Ricks, director of compliance and credit union development for the Louisiana league, has died.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla.–Readers of the Credit Union Journal are encouraged to go to http://www.compliancescore.com/sestusstudy.asp and participate in a study on Multi-Factor Authentication.

CHANTILLY, Va.–Credit card bills continue to be the first to go unpaid by consumers who are short on cash to pay bills, according to a new study.

ARLINGTON, Va.–NAFCU is offering some reassurances to credit unions after the credit union tax exemption remained in a report from the Treasury Department on exemptions that potentially could be eliminated.

ALEXANDRIA, Va.–NCUA has published a Letter to Credit Unions urging scrutiny of all relationships with third parties, noting it has directed its field staff to pursue the same.