Credit Union Central is in the sixth week of a public relations campaign called “My Credit Union Matters”, which is asking Canadians to take action to support the credit union system. The campaign has been very successful to date with 2,200 letters of support sent to finance Minister Joe Oliver.
The campaign web site, mycumatters.ca, is user friendly with clear presentation of what people can do to help. In addition to sending letters of support, you can share your stories and thoughts about how credit unions are different and how they belong to the communities they serve. We want to help build on the success achieved so far by inviting co-operatives and mutuals across Canada to get involved and show their support.
The Capital Growth Tax Credit that is all about fairness and maintaining balance in the financial sector. The general argument for a tax credit is that equal treatment with banks is not necessarily fair treatment. Banks have substantial advantages in raising capital through shares and other tools. Credit unions in comparison have limited methods of raising capital. CUCC has prepared a detailed brief that we ask you to share in your own networks. The System Brief reviews some of the history behind the soon-to-be-eliminated additional deduction for credit unions and then discusses the proposal for a capital growth tax credit.
It is very important that as many co-operatives as possible be made aware of the rationale for this proposed policy and that we collectively push for positive action. There will be a final push for letters and stories leading up to the Credit Union Central “Hike the Hill!” event on October 21, 2014. Please register for the event if you can attend and visit the My CU matters web site and to offer your support. With our collective efforts we can push this campaign to a positive finish and help assure that Canada maintains fairness in the financial sector for community based credit unions.
To learn more about the Capital Growth Tax Credit proposal and why we think it’s good for credit unions, the co-operative sector and the Canadian economy, you can visit www.myCUmatters.ca. This campaign website can also help you to:
- Send a letter to the federal Minister of Finance to remind Ottawa that credit unions aren’t like banks and shouldn’t be taxed the same.
- Click on “Share your Story” to add your voice to others talking about how credit unions make a positive difference for families, businesses and communities.
- Get your friends involved by sharing the www.myCUmatters.ca site on Facebook, or on Twitter using the #myCUmatters tag.
If you have questions or suggestions, or would like to have your organization publicly endorse this campaign, please email Credit Union Central of Canada at inquiries@cucentral.com.