[Scpg] Financing sustainability Article on PCU in Ventura County Reporter California July 21,2004

[Wesley Roe and Marjorie Lakin Erickson]

hi everyone
	great article in Ventura County Reporter the Weekly Paper , from an 
interview with Don. Great speaking tour so far, San Diego on Friday and an 
added date Sat evening in Tucson Arizona  (times and location still being 
work on, local Tucson contact for talk with Don is Brad Lancaster #520 
882-9443)
		
					wes

Ventura County Reporter California
Financing sustainability. The Permaculture Credit Union puts your money 
where your ethics are. by Rob Campbell. ...
www.vcreporter.com/greenhouse.html - July 21, 2004

Financing sustainability

The Permaculture Credit Union puts your money where your ethics are

by Rob Campbell

We have run many articles in this column over the past year about green 
home improvements and alternative fuel vehicles, but unless you have a 
healthy savings account, many of these changeover projects may remain out 
of your reach. Several already established financial institutions have 
started offering small loan incentives for such endeavors, but the 
Permaculture Credit Union, established in Santa Fe, New Mexico only four 
years ago, has taken the lead in offering savings and loan services to 
people who specifically want their money to go towards organizations and 
goods that promote the ethics of permaculture: sustainable care of the 
earth and its inhabitants, and the reinvestment of surplus to directly 
benefit the sustainable future of the planet.

Donald Sarich, 33, is the president, CEO and sole operator of the PCU, 
answering to a volunteer board of nine like-minded directors; and though he 
says his organization offers many of the same services that traditional 
credit unions offer, the PCU does so with a twist. For instance, through 
their recently instituted Sustainability Discount Program, they offer .75 
percent interest rate discounts for home energy efficiency upgrades, 
renewable energy consumption, permaculture landscaping, water catchment and 
delivery, and farm machinery. But its most innovative services concern 
loans for fuel-efficient and alternative fuel vehicles, both new and 
used—something that all of us are, or should be, looking into as the oil 
crisis intensifies.

A car that gets more than 35mpg is eligible for the standard .75 percent 
discount, but there are further incentives: For a vehicle that gets 45mpg 
or better, you can knock off a total of 1.5 percent from your loan interest 
rate; a fully electric vehicle gets a two percent interest break; and an 
alternative fuel or biodiesel vehicle will give you an extra one percent 
discount. You can even add the cost of a diesel-to-biodiesel conversion to 
the principal of your loan. “In California, especially,” Sarich said, “we 
advocate this because if you get a number of cars out there that are 
needing alternative fuels, then people start demanding these fuels.” And 
when that happens, the business sector has no choice but to respond, making 
biodiesel and other alternatives more readily available on a consumer 
basis. “We’re trying to get ahead of that curve by getting people the 
financing first,” said Sarich.

With innovations like that, this fledgling non-profit company has grown in 
leaps and bounds over the last few years. There are approximately 55 
well-established credit unions in New Mexico, and PCU has, with over a 
million dollars currently loaned, already surpassed a good 10 of those on 
its way up the ladder. The credit union’s loan limit has recently gone up 
from $30,000 to $70,000 per household, and aside from the Sustainability 
Discount Program—through which 66 percent of PCU’s loans were made in 2003, 
they offer second mortgage loans starting at six percent, signature loans 
starting at 10 percent, and share and certificate secured loans at three 
percent. They have also recently instituted a home equity line of credit at 
the prime rate, which is currently four percent. In addition, they will 
soon be able to process Automated Clearing House transactions, making it 
possible for members to automatically transfer funds from other financial 
institutions to make loan payments; and a credit card service should be 
available by the end of this summer.

New Mexico residents, naturally, make up a large part—almost a half—of the 
credit union’s approximately 600 members, but California residents make up 
nearly the entire other half, with 37 other states pitching in with a few 
to several members each. Sarich himself moved from his home in Indiana over 
a year ago to take over the helm of PCU, and he is dedicated both to 
growing the company and to promoting its mission of revitalizing our 
environment through conscious investing. To become a member, with one 
standing vote, one need only pay in $50; and to keep the playing field 
level, every investor gets one vote regardless of the amount they pay in 
above the initial $50 investment. Accounts of $300 or more, though, earn 
interest rates that are competitive with those of commercial financial 
institutions.

On Saturday, July 17 at 5pm, Sarich will be speaking about PCU, its 
mission, and how you can get involved in an informal town hall-style 
meeting at the Farmer and the Cook Restaurant in Meiners Oaks; and if you 
miss that one, he’ll be in Santa Barbara at the Public Central Library at 
1pm the next day.

To find out more about these meetings, contact the Santa Barbara 
Permaculture Network at sbpcnet at silcom.com; and for further information 
about the Permaculture Credit Union, check out their website at 
www.pcuonline.org.