SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 18
(By Senators Helmick, Ross, Dittmar, Plymale and Snyder)

Requesting that the United States Congress pass legislation resolving the dispute between banks and credit unions regarding the "field of membership" issue as to which groups can join and participate in a credit union.

Whereas, America's not-for-profit credit unions provide safe and affordable financial services to seventy million American workers and have done so since 1909; and
Whereas, Since 1982 the federal government has allowed credit unions to include multiple groups, called "select employee groups", in their field of membership to allow smaller employee groups to gain access to credit unions; and
Whereas, This expanded field of membership has allowed smaller groups of employees, mostly from smaller business organizations who otherwise would not be able to support a credit union of their own, to combine with an existing credit union; and
Whereas, Diversifying the fields of membership of credit unions has provided additional security to credit unions and their members and has provided access to many people of low or modest income; and
Whereas, The scope of credit unions' field of membership and the admission of select employee groups was the subject of a 1996 lawsuit in federal court by the banking industry, which resulted in an injunction prohibiting credit unions from admitting additional select employee groups pending final resolution of the lawsuit by the United States Supreme Court; therefore, be it
Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That theL Legislature hereby urges the United States Congress to pass legislation resolving the dispute between banks and credit unions with regard to the issue of "field of membership" and the admission of additional select employee groups; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Clerk of the Senate is hefreby directed to rrforward a copy of this resolution to the West Virginia cCongressional dDelegation.