February 2010 eNewsletter

Regulatory Reform/ Overdraft Protection

So what is happening in Washington that could affect your credit union?

The History: We all know about the big economic meltdown from Wall Street to the banking industry. Congress wants to change laws to fix this so it never happens again. But the problem is, they’re including credit unions. Credit Unions weren’t part of the problem – we continued lending and saving members money. We are part of the solution.

So what are the issues?

Regulatory Reform: As not-for-profits, credit unions are fundamentally different than for-profit banks and regulated differently. Here’s what regulatory reform could do:

Increase regulation on credit unions (we are already the most heavily regulated financial services group).
Force regulation meant for huge multi-state banks onto neighborhood credit unions.
Increased regulation would a greater burden to credit unions who already are being crushed by regulatory burdens.
Cost members money since regulations mean more staff time on non-member services!

Overdraft Protection: Congress wants to severely restrict “courtesy pay” overdraft protection to only one per month – instead of letting members choose what’s best for them. Here’s what it could do:

Members could end up with more fees - one for insufficient funds, and a merchant fee for a bounced check.
Members could be stranded when they need a courtesy payment – at the gas station, the pharmacy or their mortgage payment.

New Credit Card Changes Could Effect You

A recent survey commissioned by the Consumer Federation of America (CFA) and Credit Union National Association (CUNA) revealed that, while most consumers (61%) are aware there are new credit card protections, most (65%) don’t know they take effect later this month and don’t understand the specific protections the U.S. Congress approved last year.

Site: Credit Union National Association, Inc.

For more information, please use the links below:
Fed Card Rules
CUNA/CFA Survey

Branches In The Works

Our 16th Austin Metro location, Stone Hill Town Center, in Pflugerville near the intersection of Toll 130 and Toll 45 between Home Depot and Target is now open! If you live or work in this area, please encourage your friends and co-workers to check us out!

The University Oaks branch will be located in Round Rock off of IH-35 at the University Boulevard and Chandler Road exit in the University Oaks Shopping Center between IKEA and JCPenney. Walk-through is Monday, March 1. University Oaks is scheduled to open on Thursday, April 1.

A new branch, located in Austin at Tech Ridge, near the intersection of Howard Lane and IH 35, is scheduled to open in April of 2010 and will feature a full service lobby, three drive thru lanes and a drive thru ATM.

Great news! Plans are underway to expand further into Hays County. We have just closed on another pad site in San Marcos, located at the southeast corner of Hwy 80 and IH 35. Construction is scheduled to begin in April, with a scheduled completion date of November.

Scam Alert

Tax Preparation Scam

Austin Telco has been notified by the Credit Union National Association of a new scam on consumers. Consumers are being drawn in by individuals claiming to be tax preparers. They provide their personal information (i.e., name, social security number, etc.) to have tax refund completed and the phony tax preparer inflates the information as much as possible with fraudulent information (i.e., claiming children they don’t have day care expenses, etc. to obtain a larger refund). The tax refunds are transmitted as a direct deposit (ACH credit) to either a newly created account or an existing account with an impersonator added as a joint owner. These accounts are being established by either the impersonator or their recruiters. Once the tax refund has been deposited into this account, the impersonator or recruiter withdraws their fee and the remainder of the ACH credit goes to the tax recipient.

For more information on current Scam Alerts and other Security News, click here.

Loan and Savings Rates

Commercial Real Estate, Home Equity, Auto Loans and more!

Certificates of Deposit, Money Market, Regular Savings and more!

Investment Services

Statistically Speaking

As of January 31, 2010

Number of Members	64,433
Number of Checking Accounts	33,225
Capital	$ 84,540,156
Loans	$ 341,170,178
Deposits	$ 900,102,648
Assets	$ 987,967,932

Regular Lobby & Drive-Thru Hours

Monday & Friday

All Lobbies       9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
All Drive-Thru's     7:30 AM - 6:00 PM

Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday

All Lobbies    9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
All Drive-Thru's     7:30 AM - 6:00 PM

Saturday

Select Lobbies* 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM
All Drive-Thru’s 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM

*La Frontera, Taos, Leander, Bastrop, Pecan Park, Brodie Lane, Georgetown, Cedar Park and Buda

If you have any questions or need more information on our locations, please call 512.302.5555, ext. 7000.