Fan club adores 'compliance queen'

There’s no question that Heather Line, compliance specialist at the Utah Credit Union Association (UCUA), has a fan club.

Ask anybody, says Ken Pane, president/CEO of Freedom Credit Union in Provo, Utah.

“Heather makes compliance bearable and almost pleasant,” he says. “She does the hard work of slogging through mountains of compliance info in its original legalese and translating it into plain talk that normal people can understand.”

“One of the main reasons a lot of small credit unions disappear is that they are overwhelmed with compliance issues,” adds Dale Howe, manager at Logan (Utah) Medical Federal Credit Union. “Heather helps us hike up this mountain.”

And Marcia Morton, vice president of Education First Credit Union in Ogden, Utah, thinks Heather is even better than the Internet. “She’s always available and will find answers to questions about compliance much faster than an Internet search.”

Obviously, compliance is her game. Line joined UCUA six years ago and is constantly teaching credit unions about compliance, developing new tools, and fielding questions.

Tailoring compliance solutions to various credit unions based on product offerings, asset size, and membership isn’t easy.

“I help tiny credit unions under $1 million in assets and huge institutions with several billion in assets,” she says. “The regulations are the same, but how they are applied is very different.”

“Most people approach compliance with a groan, but Heather loves it,” says Stephen Nelson, UCUA’s vice president of credit union support. “It shows in her enthusiasm for new regulations and her balanced and fair approach that takes credit union size, complexity, and staffing into account. Her passion leads to a drive unequalled by any compliance expert I’ve ever met.”

With 20 years in the financial services industry, Heather says this is the best job she has ever had. “I have amazing co-workers and get to assist some of the best credit unions in the nation,” she says. “I hope to remain at UCUA for as long as they’ll have me.”

There’d likely be a riot if she left.

“Heather is a good leader, knows compliance, and is well on her way to becoming the compliance queen for the credit union movement,” says Sherrie Johnson, vice president of operations for American United Family of Credit Unions in West Jordan, Utah. “She’d better stick around.”