This is simple, sensible public policy widely supported by political leaders and citizens. Why should a family of modest means pay more income taxes to support our schools than a highly-profitable billion-dollar financial institution that is gobbling up smaller institutions and expanding rapidly?

As Frank points out above, no credit unions are paying school taxes, even the billion dollar behemoths, because they chose to skirt the Utah law by switching to the federal system. By going federal, they also evade paying sales taxes.

So here's the bottom line: Do Utah taxpayers, burdened with some of the highest taxes in the country, care that some of the state's largest businesses do not support our schools, our local governments, our transportation needs or anything else with tax dollars? Do they care that as these mega-credit unions grow larger they shrink the tax base, taking more and more economic activity off the tax rolls, leaving the burden on the rest of us? That's why this issue is not really about banks and credit unions but about Utah taxpayers and the mega-credit unions.

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Republican LaVarr Webb was policy deputy to Gov. Mike Leavitt and Deseret News managing editor. He now is a political consultant and lobbyist. E-mail: lwebb@exoro.com. Democrat Frank Pignanelli is Salt Lake attorney, lobbyist and political adviser. A recent candidate for Salt Lake mayor, Pignanelli served 10 years in the Utah House of Representatives, six years as House minority leader. E-mail: frankp@xmission.com.