Pennsylvania's auditor general, Jack Wagner, is doing a rethinkor a "clarification" on his proposal last month to look at taxingcredit unions as a way of helping solve the state's budgetimpasse.

In a letter sent Tuesday to James McCormack, president/CEO ofthe Pennsylvania Credit Union Association, Wagner wrote that insuggesting taxing non-profits including CUs he did not specificallyname CUs in a proposal submitted to Gov. Edward Rendell.

"Nor did I dispute" the value of CUs to the state's economy,wrote Wagner, "or suggest they do not focus on service to theirmembers."

The PCUA in an Aug. 14 letter to Wagner and distributed tolawmakers challenged the state official on lifting the CU taxexemption warning if implemented would cause serious harm to the CU"business model" and the industry as a whole.

It also would be injurious to the state's financial well beingconsidering CUs have already proved their worthiness by coming tothe financial aid of thousands of state employees still missingpaychecks, said McCormack.

"We were very pleased to get this letter of clarification fromAuditor General Jack Wagner recognizing the value that creditunions bring to Pennsylvania consumers," said McCormack. "We alsolook forward to meeting with the Auditor General and his staff tosee how our organizations can work together for the benefit ofPennsylvanians."