LA HABRA, Calif. — If you are someone who has had a record of not managing checking accounts well and lives in Orange County, California or one of 16 other localities in the greater Los Angeles area, the $651 million American First Credit Union wants to give you a second chance.

The CU's new Second Chance Checking Account program will enable new members to establish a new checking account while helping them improve their financial history and learn to better manage their finances, the CU said in a prepared statement.

As a condition of opening the new account, members must first complete an online checking account management course offered by a financial education firm called BALANCE, pay a $25 fee and must open their checking accounts with a $50.00 deposit. If the account remains in good standing for six months it will automatically convert to a regular checking account, the CU said.