Commentary

While the American economy is strong as a whole, there still remains a segment of our population that may never achieve the American dream of financial self-sufficiency, because they lack the awareness of and access to the necessary services offered by mainstream financial institutions. The credit union system was established...

Many in the financial services industry have kept a close eye on the federal preemption case Watters v. Wachovia brought before the U.S. Supreme Court in November 2006. It was the first banking preemption case heard by the U.S. Supreme Court in 10 years.

Not a week goes by without headline-grabbing news about a large company, university or government agency that has suffered a data breach potentially impacting thousands, if not millions of Americans. At an alarming rate, consumers' personal information is being exploited through credit card fraud and a host of identity theft...

I truly believe that the soul of the credit union movement, which is its philosophy, is still alive and well, but over the past several years it has suffered from serious and identifiable erosion. I want to share some of the things I learned during my career that helped me...

Meaningful discussion has been going on, recently, regarding the value of membership in a credit union. In addition to owner equity, good rates, convenience and confidence, members rate products and services high on the scale when it comes to valuing their credit union membership. With affordable health care at the...

In January, my colleagues on the House Financial Services Committee and I began 2007 on a bipartisan note by bringing to the floor an important piece of unfinished business remaining from the 109th Congress--legislation that would relieve financial institutions from having to file Currency Transaction Reports for "seasoned customers." H.R....

Creating Value in Underserved Markets. If you haven't read it, you should. It never mentions credit unions; but it's all about credit unions. Untapped provides specific examples of how businesses around the world have had success reaching and growing business among underserved communities that previously were not considered viable customers.

and during my tenure as chairman of the Credit Union National Association--I say what I mean. I strongly believe that credit unions play a unique role in the financial services market and that our way of doing business--our philosophy, our goals--benefit all consumers, members and nonmembers alike. We lead, others...