Farm Credit returns $5.9 million to members

Farm Credit of Western New York returned $5.9 million to its member-borrowers based on interest which accrued on their accounts in 2004. This marks the ninth year that the 16-county credit and financial services cooperative has distributed a patronage refund to member-borrowers. This year's patronage refund is $1.9 million more than the association paid in 2004.

The patronage refund is equivalent to approximately 23 percent of the interest that accrued on member-borrower accounts in 2004. Chairman of the Board Rodney Stettner, explained the patronage refund is a reduction in interest paid, which lowers the average borrower's effective interest rate by one percent.