adminAs we get back into the swing of things after taking a few days off to be with family and friends for the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, there is good news to share. Congratulations to Alabama credit unions for surpassing the two million-member mark in the second quarter of this year. This is a significant milestone that should be celebrated. At the end of 2016, Alabama had a population of 4.863 million residents, which means that approximately two out of every five residents in Alabama are now members of a credit union. During the second quarter, data further demonstrated how credit unions in Alabama and Florida continue to grow and prosper as well as provide much needed value to their members and the communities they serve.
Additionally, in recent weeks in Florida, officials from Suncoast Credit Union and Fairwinds Credit Union participated on a panel in the Florida House Insurance and Banking Committee. The panel addressed small business lending, job growth in the state, and the regulatory environment in Washington, D.C. as well as other topics of interest. Notably, three of the four panelists represented credit unions. It’s great to see policymakers looking to credit unions on these type of issues.
More good news reported on the national level last week as the U.S. Senate voted to kept the same amount of funding for the CDFI Fund next year as in 2017 – a total of $248 million. If you have not done so, now is time to register for the Alabama and Florida State Advocacy Conferences as well as the CUNA GAC. Join us as we rally together to meet with legislators to advocate for reducing regulatory burden and protection of the tax-exempt status for credit unions and keep this momentum going.
Where’s Patrick: This week I am in the Birmingham office, Tuscaloosa and then back in Tallahassee. To see my tentative schedule for the next two weeks, visit the LSCU Information for Credit Unions’ webpage.
