Don't Tax My Credit Union

With tax reform on the Congressional agenda, an old idea has been floated once again to cut the federal income tax exemption afforded to credit unions.

The discussion has struck a chord with credit union associations across the country whose members are certain of where the threat originated.

Stewart Thomas has banked at Sunstate Credit Union in Gainesville for 25 years.

“They’re community based. All the money deposited in the banks is used for loans inside the community,” said Thomas.

Banking sources say tax reform is their best chance in years to change the century-old tax status of their chief competitors. Credit unions are taking an equally aggressive stance, seeing tax reform as an opportunity to solidify support for their tax status.

Listen to South Carolina Federal Credit Union CEO Scott Woods speak about the Don’t Tax My Credit Union campaign on ABC News.

As the government shutdown continues, credit unions whose members are federal workers offering low-rate loans and other assistance. Here is just a sampling, but check out your credit union if you need money to tied you offer while your paycheck is delayed because of politics:

In 1934, the Federal Credit Union Act set the foundation for the organization of federal credit unions. A federal credit union was defined as a “cooperative association organized…for the purpose of promoting thrift among its members and creating a source of credit for provident or productive purposes.”

Some bank fees, like getting charged at another bank’s ATM, are old news, but some banks are now implementing dozens of new non-standard fees, including one for speaking to a human representative. CNBC’s Kayla Tausche reports.

Brandon Luetkenhaus of the Nebraska Credit Union League appears on the Jack and Dave in the Morning Show on Lincoln’s KLIN radio.

Cooperatively run credit unions used by 96 million Americans could lose their tax exempt status if Congress approves a proposal from big banks to tax the not-for-profit financial institutions. Behind the push to impose a tax on credit unions is the American Bankers Association (ABA), an lobbyist organization representing the $13 trillion U.S. banking industry.

Five years ago this week, a collapsing housing bubble plunged America into its worst financial crisis since the Depression. Wall Street’s near meltdown midwifed both the tea party and the Occupy movement, and triggered a bitter debate about the big banks that continues to this day.