Tips for Reaching Out to Your Members for Don't Tax My Credit Union Movement

If you're looking for new ways to contact your credit union members about the Don't Tax My Credit Union movement, we've come up with a few you might want to try. Credit unions in general got very creative for CUNA's DontTaxMyCU Tuesday on July 23rd. The message reached more than 875,000 people nationwide, including Congress members, mainly through social media channels including Twitter and its 2,171 tweets hashtagged #DontTaxMyCU. 

Even though DontTaxMyCU Tuesday has passed, it doesn't mean the momentum should stop. There are several ways to encourage your members to reach out to Congress - not only via social media but by email and even snail mail. Whichever platform you use, the messaging should be similar. Below is an example of how one Michigan credit union is reaching out to its members to engage them in the battle over tax reform discussions in Congress. 

Donna Bullard, president/CEO of Clarkston Brandon Community CU shared a Constant Contact email that her credit union sent to members encouraging them to visit DontTaxMyCreditUnion.org. “(We) have had a lot of opens and even had a member call that was all fired up to do all she could regarding this. She said it was the best site regarding contacting government on issues that she has ever seen,” Bullard said in an email.

Bullard said the number of newsletter opens was about 10 percent above its normal open rate.

Here's what Bullard sent to her members.

Dear Member:

I am writing with an urgent message about the future of all credit unions. You may have heard that politicians in Washington are considering an overhaul of the federal tax code. I want to alert you to an idea being discussed that could greatly harm Clarkston Brandon Community Credit Union(CBCCU) and our members.

As a member, you know that CBCCU is owned and directed by you. Unlike banks that maximize profits for a small group of investors, credit unions exist to serve their members, including working families, small businesses, and the local community. Because we return benefits to our members, we are able to offer higher returns on savings, lower rate on loans, and most importantly, low or no fees. That's why your credit union is not-for-profit and tax exempt.

Now banks and some politicians in Washington are talking about taxing credit unions like CBCCU, despite the fact that we are not-for-profit. They say we can balance the budget by taxing credit unions, even though credit unions hold only 6% of all financial assets nationwide, and banks hold the rest.

Since credit unions are not-for-profit, taxing credit unions could even destroy credit unions as we know them, eliminating financial choice for consumers.

Moreover, taxing credit unions won't even scratch our budget deficit. For every $1 in new taxes on credit unions, the government would wipe out $10 in benefits to credit union members and consumers. So taxing credit unions is not only bad for our nation's economy, a tax on credit unions is really just a tax on you, the member.

That's why I am writing to urge you to send a strong message to Congress: "Don't Tax My Credit Union."

It's easy to take action: just visit www.DontTaxMyCreditUnion.org to contact your U.S. Representative and Senators.

While there, you can also watch a video, follow our campaign on social media, and learn more about how you can help us tell Congress, "Don't Tax My Credit Union!"

Signed

Donna Bullard
President/CEO

Has your credit union had its own Don't Tax My Credit Union stories or successes? We'd love to hear about them!