Fox Valley Villages Sun - 5/21/10

By ANDRE SALLES asalles@stmedianetwork.com

AURORA -- There are about 5,300 people in Aurora without bank accounts, people who rely on check-cashers and payday lenders for their financial transactions. A new initiative launched by State Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias aims to change that.

Called Bank on Aurora, the program is the second in a series of statewide drives to connect as many people with checking and savings accounts as possible.

People who rely on payday loan stores and check-cashers end up paying much more for financial services -- the average unbanked household pays about $575 a year just to cash payroll checks, said Robin Kelly, Giannoulias' chief of staff.

Bank on Rockford was the first, launched six months ago, and about 350 people have opened accounts there, Kelly said.

Kelly is hoping for similar success in Aurora.

The goal, she said, is to sign up 1,200 people within the first year, which kicked off Thursday with a press conference at Family Counseling Service on River Street in downtown Aurora. The treasurer's office has partnered with the city, Aurora Township, eight banks and about 20 local organizations to get the ball rolling.

The banks will offer free or low-cost checking and savings accounts to those who need them. Though they are not a mandatory part of the program, organizations like Family Counseling Service will also offer classes on budgeting and maintaining good credit.

The program targets two types of people: those who have never had a bank account, and those who have, for whatever reason, found themselves dropped from a bank.

Bettye DeRamus, director of Consumer Credit Counseling Service, said she sees the need for the Bank on Aurora program. People need to be educated on how to handle bank accounts, she said, and the classes her organization will offer will only take a couple hours to complete. Banks will feel better taking a chance on someone who has been through a class, she said.

Information about Bank on Aurora and referral forms will be printed next week and distributed to participating agencies. The program cost no state money, Kelly said, aside from staff time to organize it. Rather, the money comes from the banks themselves and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.