Lawmakers, media spotlight credit unions’ efforts during shutdown

Credit unions’ efforts to support members affected by the federal government shutdown are gaining lawmakers’ and the media’s attention.    

In Colorado, Rep. Gabe Evans, R, held a roundtable with GoWest Credit Union Association and credit union leaders in his district to raise awareness about how they are helping government workers left without a paycheck. CBS News Colorado highlighted the meeting and credit union outreach wrote a detailed recap of the roundtable.  

“We just want to make sure that we’re getting the message out there—that there’s options and there’s resources because we truly are all in this together,” said Rep. Evans.  

Colorado Credit Union Chief Financial Officer Scott Sager, Canvas Credit Union Chief Transformation Officer Chris Myklebust, Ent Credit Union SVP of Government Relations and Credit Union Advocacy David Sprenger, and Northern Colorado Credit Union CEO Megan Barrett took part in the roundtable.  

“What we’ve done is immediately implement what’s called a Helping Hand Loan. It’s $7,500 and it’s for 12 months, interest free. We’ve waived all fees for doing that so that we can get people through a difficult time,” said Myklebust in the news story.

Colorado credit unions and GoWest Credit Union Association also took part in a roundtable with Rep. Jeff Crank, R. The group discussed how they can support service members, federal workers and contractors impacted by the shutdown. Fox21 and KOAA News5 covered the roundtable, highlighting Air Academy Credit Union CEO Glenn Strebe’s commitment to help customers skip payments on loans if needed.  

The news channel also highlighted Navy Federal Credit Union’s 0% loan program offered for military members, government employees, and contracts affected by the shutdown. Navy Federal’s shutdown assistance for their members was profiled in a recent America’s Credit Unions Blog post.

America’s Credit Unions encourages credit unions respond to its survey, sharing how they’re assisting members. The survey and other resources are located on the Government Shutdown Assistance page. If you have a government shutdown story to share, contact our communications team.