JEFFERSON CITY - MoDOT heard questions and complaints today in response to a January decision to separate from several highway credit unions.
Ten unions were told they had until September 30, 2010 to vacate their offices.
The credit unions say they were blind-sided by the decision and unsure why MoDOT would make such a move.
"You don't take a financial institution - its not like moving a bakery or a shoe store - there's a whole lot involved. So we thought why did they do this, and by September 30th?" noted Peggy Nall of the Missouri Credit Union.
Currently, housing the credit unions costs MoDOT rent and utilities.
The credit unions have offered to pay those costs, but the offer did not change MoDOT's decision to separate.
"Who owns the credit union?" asked Highway credit union member Forrest Wrisinger. "The employees and the retirees. It doesn't belong to the Commission. It doesn't belong to somebody outside the big corporation. It belongs to the employees and the retirees. And these are the one who use it. And these are the ones we should be taking care of."
MoDOT argued back, saying managing credit unions is not part of its core mission.
"Given the financial environment we are in as a country, there are risks and liabilities that we do not understand and we are not in the best position to manage," said MoDOT Director Pete Rahn. [Read story at KOMU].
