Credit union employees have been making the rounds extolling the conclusion of a recent report on the economic impacts of credit unions not only to the state of Washington, but to Jefferson County in particular.

Jim Morrell, president and CEO of Peninsula Credit Union, cited the 2016 Northwest Credit Unions’ Economic Impacts report, which listed a number of benefits created for and by the state’s 3.6 million credit union members.

Morrell attributed $5.5 billion in economic impact to Washington credit unions.

“That’s an average direct benefit of $103 for every credit union member in Washington,” Morrell said. “Closer to home, that’s $2.8 million in economic impact to Jefferson County.”

While the 2016 report found that $40.1 billion in deposits are made to state credit unions, that accounts for only 22 percent of the financial deposits in the state, with the remaining 78 percent, or $142.3 billion, being split between other financial institutions.

“At the same time, 50 percent of the state’s total population belongs to a credit union,” Morrell said. “That’s 11,223 credit union members in Jefferson County, or one-third of our county’s population.”

Morrell pointed to credit unions’ lower interest rates for loans, and lower service fees, which he sees as paving the way for greater savings and reinvestment capacities for their members.

He also identified a multiplier effect between the direct and indirect economic benefits of credit unions.

“Credit unions are directly responsible for creating 14 jobs in Jefferson County, but the total economic impact is closer to 26 jobs,” Morrell said. “When you have more money in your pocket, you go to shop, and your job generates incomes for other jobs.”

Morrell elaborated that those 14 credit union employees earn a collective income of $464,000, but that generates $760,000 in income that’s supported by credit union employees.

“That’s how the employees’ $1.5 million in spending and compensation yields $2.8 million in economic impacts to the county,” Morrell said. “The more members that credit unions have, the greater the contribution to economic development.”

VALUE OVER PROFIT

Morrell attributed credit unions’ lower rates and fees to their ownership by their members.

“We’re not trying to generate profit off our own members for stockholders, but to return value to those members,” Morrell said.

Morrell referred to another study, the United Way’s ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) Report, measuring the number of households that earn more than the U.S. poverty level, but less than the basic cost of living for the state, also known as “the ALICE threshold.”

“The combined number of poverty and ALICE households adds up to 32 percent of the total population of Washington,” Morrell said. “In Jefferson County, that’s 40 percent of the population that’s struggling to cover the costs of transportation, shelter and food.”

Given the fact that credit union members account for half the state’s population, but barely more than one-fifth of its financial deposits, Morrell said, the customer base of credit unions are more economically diverse than those of larger financial institutions, and therefore better equipped to serve the needs of the less well-off.

“As of now, 80 percent of our employees are certified financial counselors,” Morrell said, noting that among those employees is Peninsula Credit Union Vice President Kimberly Ingram. “By next year, we expect that number to be 100 percent. We all understand our mission. Financial services are like a salad bar, and we’re here to serve every kind of income level.”