SAN DIEGO - Pre-funding employee benefits is a relatively new concept, but one expert says it can help credit unions control costs.

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Throughout 2007, the Credit Union Journal, in conjunction with ENCORE Card Services, are profiling the credit unions of each U.S. state and D.C. Rather than appear in alphabetical order, the states are being featured in the order they became states. For info: visit www.encore-ecs.coop.

BALTIMORE - State Employees CU of Maryland has joined the credit union-owned CO-OP Financial Services. That gives the 250,000 members of the credit union access to 490 surcharge-free CO-OP ATMs in Maryland and 25,000 in the U.S.

TUKWILA, Wash. - When BECU implemented higher interest rates on some of its checking and savings products in the Autumn of 2006, the move was expected to cause a splash in its Seattle-area markets. What the credit union did not expect was that the new product offerings would soon be cited as an example for the entire credit union community to mimic.

WESTBROOK, Maine - The Maine Credit Union League doubled the budget on its statewide advertising campaign, adding a new consumer-based website and a more aggressive ad buy to help drive new membership growth at the state's credit unions.

RALEIGH, N.C. - State Employees CU introduced a savings account it hopes will satisfy both the bulls and the bears among its members, one of the first credit union accounts tied to the returns of the stock market.

Margins have remained tight again in 2007. There will be pressure on the cost of funds, and it will be a challenge for credit unions to increase spread significantly in the next six months.

SAN DIEGO - Pre-funding employee benefits is a relatively new concept, but one expert says it can help credit unions control costs.

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. - In a hotly competitive California banking marketplace, Arrowhead Central Credit Union ranks number-one in 2006 return on assets (ROA) for credit unions with of more than $1-billion in assets, closing the year with an ROA of 1.73%.

MADISON, Wis. - Nominations for the 8th Annual Excellence in Lending Awards, which recognizes outstanding lending results by credit unions, are now being accepted.

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DALLAS — Credit unions looking to bolster their bottom lines have a whole host of ways to measure just how profitable — or costly — various aspects of their business are, but they don't always have the right tools to do that all-important measuring.

Margins have remained tight again in 2007. There will be pressure on the cost of funds, and it will be a challenge for credit unions to increase spread significantly in the next six months.

MANCHESTER, N.H. - St. Mary's Bank is the financial partner of a new public/private venture to revitalize an older section of town here.

WARREN, Mich. - The former CEO of Tandem Federal Credit Union here has been sentenced to one year in the Macomb County Jail for attempting to use the Internet to arrange for sex with a five-year-old girl.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. - NCUA ruled last week that federal credit unions are bound by its rules and regulations regarding dormant accounts, and not by those imposed by the state of Virginia. In a new legal opinion issued to the Virginia Department of the Treasury, NCUA said that its rules will allow federally chartered credit unions operating in Virginia to continue the practice of retroactively waiving account fees or reinstating dividends previously unpaid because an account is dormant.

DALLAS - Credit unions looking to bolster their bottom lines have a whole host of ways to measure just how profitable-or costly-various aspects of their business are, but they don't always have the right tools to do that all-important measuring.

SAN DIEGO - Tighter margins, pressures on cost containment and regulatory compliance are issues credit union CEOs face every day, but many executives do not realize those same concerns have an impact on their CUs' human resources departments.

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