MERRIFIELD, Va. -- Navy Federal Credit Union has disaffiliated from the Virginia Credit Union League and CUNA in a principled protest over the league's chief lobbyist, Reggie Jones, and the firm Williams Mullen, which also represents the Community Financial Services Association, the trade association for 60% of the country's payday lenders.

Senior Vice President of Planning for Navy Federal Ralph Yeatts confirmed the action, saying it was an evident conflict of interest to have credit unions represented in the Virginia General Assembly by the same person and firm that also forwarded the interests of payday lenders. "We see it as contradictory to share a lobbyist that puts forward the cause of payday lenders. We think it trivializes the credit union difference and demeans credit union philosophy. It's simply incompatible to be represented by a lobbyist who is also the chief spokesman for the payday lending industry."

Jones' 27-year relationship with the VCUL and efforts on behalf of the CFSA were revealed in Credit Union Times in a Sept. 19^th story about Virginians Against Payday Loans (VAPL), an anti-payday lending grassroots organization that sought to combine efforts with the league.

VCUL CEO Rick Pillow said that Navy FCU President Cutler Dawson first telephoned him in mid-October to complain about the dual relationship. "I respect Cutler's principled stand on this, and know that the league's credit union members may not agree with us on every decision we make. Good people can respectfully disagree from time to time. But we have to look at the broader issues that affect all Virginia credit unions."

"The issue will be settled right after the General Assembly's 2008 veto session in April sometime, and we'll make sure our lobbyist doesn't represent payday lenders," added Pillow. But pending issues before the Assembly, and contractual obligations prevented an immediate severance of the relationship.

Full details in the next issue of CU Times

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Navy Federal Disaffiliates from CUNA

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