"We can't sit by the sidelines on this one," says Cornerstone CU League CEO Dick Ensweiler.

We’re all responsible for the protection of credit unions’ tax exemption and the preservation of credit union principles, Cornerstone Credit Union League CEO Dick Ensweiler told attendees at the league’s Leadership Conference & Expo in San Antonio.

He urged credit unions to participate in “Don’t Tax My Credit Union,” a national campaign dedicated to ensuring Congress doesn't raise taxes on the nation’s 96 million credit union members by removing the credit union tax exemption.

“We can’t sit by the sidelines on this one,” Ensweiler says. ‘We have to do everything we can today to protect our tax-exempt status.”

Congress, he adds, must understand the impact credit union taxation would have on consumers.

Ensweiler encouraged attendees to visit DontTaxMyCredit Union.org and to participate in the second “Don’t Tax Tuesday” event Sept. 10, which welcomes back members of Congress following their summer break.

Ensweiler also spoke of the importance of preserving the credit union philosophy of “people helping people.”

“It’s exhilarating,” he says, “to know that credit unions are helping members solve their problems and enhance their lives.”