I have worked at a small credit union for 24 years. I have beenthe CEO for the past 6 years. When I say small, I really mean tiny,as we are the smallest credit union left in Clinton County,NY.

We have 1150 members, 5 employees, and run around 6million in assets. My share/loan ratio sits comfortably in the 80%range, and we really don't see delinquent loans very often. Ourmembership is a mix of blue collar factory workers, retirees, andin the last few years, a lot of young SSI recipients. We know mostof them by name, and we have many members that have been with usfor all of my 24 years and longer.

We do not have traditional overdraft 'loans'. We do charge $30as a 'courtesy fee' to save a draft or ACH, and we veryrarely return any payments of anykind.

We are not a 'live' credit union. Debit card transactions arenot 'instant'. Every single morning, either myself or my OperationsManager download our transmission files and post members drafts,ACH, and debit card transactions. We then take the time to look atevery single member that is on the rejection list for insufficientfunds. If the member has either a loan with us or direct deposit(and 90% of them do!), we will hand post that payment into thenegative. The $30 fee stands. This saves the member the fee on theother side, the negative consequences of having a check returned,and in some cases, the legal ramifications of bouncing multiplechecks.

If you have never bounced a check, and suddenly make a mistake,I can guarantee that fee is being reversed. Members that do thisoften are personally spoken to and encouraged to get on track. Wewill offer advice, refinance loans, and we return thousands ofdollars in fees every year. We also take the time to reverse anyfee that is bigger than the amount of the payment, even though oursoftware cannot recognize this for us. We do it all by hand, andyes it does take an hour or more every day.

Despite this, we continually see members that live a week aheadof the paycheck. They actually thank us for saving the check/ACHand they tell us repeatedly they don't mind the fee, that it isbetter than being returned to the store. They often say thatknowing that we will cover a check is what keeps them breathingwhen they have to pay rent or buy groceries and just don't have themoney!

This being said, this credit union made $68,000.00 in overdraftfees last year. We probably reversed another $35,000.00.

I do not enjoy charging this fee. I freely admit that with thelow interest rate environment the past 6-7 years, it has been alifesaver for this credit union as we doubled our money loaned outjust to keep our loan interest income level. We do not make money,we scrape by. We would not be in business if we didn't have feeincome, but I also admit that I will always feel 'bad' that we haveto charge it. I do not charge fees to make up for loss of loanincome. I charge fees because we have a core group of members thatcontinually write checks or authorize payments knowing that we willcover it for them, for a fee.

For some reason, 'Personal Responsibility' hasbecome a hated term. I just don't understand how we can be blamedfor someone who knowingly and willingly writes a check knowing darnwell they don't have the money. 80% of my membership has NEVERwritten a bad check or paid an overdraft fee. I have members thatare in management positions and make 6 figure incomes, and theybounce checks regularly and are head over heels in debt. I alsohave members that make $30,000.00/year and raise a family in afrugal, responsible manner and have never bounced a check. Theyhave excellent credit and live within their means. It is not beingpoor that causes this situation. Is it being uneducated? Possibly.But when I offer to hold a class to help members balance a budgetand/or a checkbook, I don't get a response. When I meet one on onewith members, they listen and they try to get on track, but theyrarely are willing to make the sacrifices needed. In this day ofinstant gratification, saving for a vacationor not spending $2000.00 on Christmas gifts justdoesn't work for many people. That credit card is so easy to use,and that new car looks so good in the driveway.And not bringing the kids to Disney World? Whatan awful parent/grandparent you must be!

I shudder when I hear Congress and the CFPB talk about overdraftreform. We are not the 'big bank'. We see what happens in thetrenches every day. We know our members, we help our members, andwe really do care. But if I am ordered to limit fees to 1 per day,or no more than 3 per month, then I will have no choice but toreturn those payments and cause more fees and grief, and even legalissues for many members. How is this helping? The Opt-in mandatefor debit cards was bad enough. I don't know who Congress talked towhen they said people would rather be denied at point of sale thanbe charged a fee , but that is not my membership! I don't thinkCongress has a clue what is means to be middle class and lowerclass. They don't have a clue what it means to someone to have therent check saved or that check for groceries covered, even thoughthe credit union takes the risk of it never being paid back. By theway, that risk is why we charge the fee. I also have to look outfor this credit union as a whole, not just each individualmember.

My husband and I met in high school. We married at 20 and havebeen together 34 years. We never had financial help from ANYONE.(and yet we never bounced a check. Imagine that?) I never took aclass on budgeting. I just always thought that when you had a bill,you better pay it. If you can't afford to buy something, you don't.We lived paycheck to paycheck for many years as we raised 2 sons. Istayed home for 7 years to raise my sons to school-age. We drove anold car and never took big vacations. My husband sacrificed 20years of his life to law enforcement and all the 'joys' that careerbrings. I took a job at a credit union as it fell into my lap whenI called for a babysitter one day and my neighbor asked if I wasinterested in working with her. I knew nothing about credit unions.It developed into a 24 year career that I have loved. I truly docare about my members. I would like nothing better than to see eachand every one of them be able to have a solid financial life, neverpay a fee, never worry about a bill, to have a new car and go onvacation. But I also have to accept the fact that not everyonewants to work hard and make sacrifices. The best I can do is helpwhen I can, treat them like decent human beings, and give themadvice. The rest is up to them.

I just want to add that while Bernie Sanders is a nice, honestguy (I have even said hello to him while shopping on Churchstreetin Burlington, Vt), people have a right to be wealthy. People oftenmake life choices that either propel them forward or hold themback. I started with nothing. I could have stayed home with my sonsforever. I could have flipped burgers for a living. Or I could takea chance and get out of my comfort zone and take a job at a creditunion. I could have remained a teller for my entire career. Idecided that I wanted more, so I educated myself. I read everythingI could and I paid attention. I never went to college because assoon as I graduated from high school, I had to work full time justto afford rent & groceries. (again, never bounced a check in mylife). I never got a dime from my parents once I turned 18. Neitherdid my husband. We worked hard and we made goodchoices. While we certainly are nowhere near wealthy, I makemore than my entry level teller because I have more responsibilityand I have earned it. Please don't disparage people who make money,and remember that if someone didn't own that factory orstore, then a lot of jobs would be lost.

Ellen Drollette

Manager/CEO

GP Community FCU

Plattsburgh, N.Y.