Field of Membership
Legally, and for tax purposes, credit unions are considered to be non-profits. Banks assert that since this status exempts credit unions from many federal and state taxes, credit unions can provide more competitive products. This has led to a variety of laws which limit how credit unions may accept members. Historically, this meant credit unions were left with the individuals which banks found to be less desirable or those in a limited geographic area. More recently, credit unions have been able to broaden their eligibility requirements to accept more members.
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Famous quotes containing the words field of, field and/or membership:
“The field of doom bears death as its harvest.”
—Aeschylus (525–456 B.C.)
“The woman ... turned her melancholy tone into a scolding one. She was not very young, and the wrinkles in her face were filled with drops of water which had fallen from her eyes, which, with the yellowness of her complexion, made a figure not unlike a field in the decline of the year, when the harvest is gathered in and a smart shower of rain has filled the furrows with water. Her voice was so shrill that they all jumped into the coach as fast as they could and drove from the door.”
—Sarah Fielding (1710–1768)
“The two real political parties in America are the Winners and the Losers. The people don’t acknowledge this. They claim membership in two imaginary parties, the Republicans and the Democrats, instead.”
—Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. (b. 1922)