Supporting the goals and ideals of "Financial Literacy Month".

IV 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. RES. 275 Supporting the goals and ideals of ‘‘Financial Literacy Month’’. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 1, 2019 Mrs. BEATTY (for herself and Mr. STIVERS) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Reform RESOLUTION Supporting the goals and ideals of ‘‘Financial Literacy Month’’. Whereas according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Cor- poration (referred hereinafter as the ‘‘FDIC’’), at least 25.2 percent of households in the United States, or near- ly 32,600,000 households with approximately 63,000,000 adults, are unbanked or underbanked and therefore have not had an opportunity to access savings, lending, and other basic financial services; Whereas according to the 2018 Consumer Financial Literacy Survey final report of the National Foundation for Credit Counseling— (1) only 41 percent of adults in the United States have a budget; (2) 79 percent of adults in the United States ac- knowledged that they could benefit from additional advice VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:56 Apr 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR275.IH HR275 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HRES 275 IH and answers to everyday financial questions from a pro- fessional; (3) 1 in 4 adults in the United States admitted they do not pay all their bills on time; and (4) 61 percent of adults have had credit card debt in the past 12 months and most have done nothing to ob- tain a lower interest rate for their credit card debt; Whereas the Report on the Economic Well-Being of U.S. households by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York found that 40 percent of adults could not cover a $400 emergency expense without borrowing or selling some- thing of value; Whereas according to the statistical release of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System for the fourth quarter of 2018 entitled ‘‘Financial Accounts of the United States: Flow of Funds, Balance Sheets, and Inte- grated Macroeconomic Accounts’’, outstanding household debt in the United States was $15.6 trillion; Whereas according to the 2018 Survey of the States: Eco- nomic and Personal Finance Education in Our Nation’s Schools, a biennial report by the Council for Economic Education— (1) only 22 States require students to take an eco- nomics course as a high school graduation requirement; and (2) only 17 States require students to take a per- sonal finance course as a high school graduation require- ment, either independently or as part of an economics course; Whereas according to the Gallup-HOPE Index, only 52 per- cent of students in the United States have money in a bank or credit union account; VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:28 Apr 02, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR275.IH HR275 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HRES 275 IH Whereas expanding access to the safe, mainstream financial system will provide individuals with less expensive and more secure options for managing finances and building wealth; Whereas quality personal financial education is essential to ensure that individuals are prepared— (1) to manage money, credit, and debt; and (2) to become responsible workers, heads of house- hold, investors, entrepreneurs, business leaders, and citi- zens; Whereas increased financial literacy empowers individuals to make wise financial decisions and reduces the confusion caused by an increasingly complex economy; Whereas a greater understanding of, and familiarity with, fi- nancial markets and institutions will lead to increased economic activity and growth; and Whereas, in 2003, Congress— (1) determined that coordinating Federal financial literacy efforts and formulating a national strategy is im- portant; and (2) in light of that determination, passed the Finan- cial Literacy and Education Improvement Act (20 U.S.C. 9701 et seq.), establishing the Financial Literacy and Education Commission: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 1 (1) supports the goals and ideals of ‘‘Financial 2 Literacy Month’’ to raise public awareness about— 3 (A) the importance of personal financial 4 education in the United States; and 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:56 Apr 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR275.IH HR275 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HRES 275 IH (B) the serious consequences that may re- 1 sult from a lack of understanding about per- 2 sonal finances; and 3 (2) calls on the Federal Government, States, lo- 4 calities, schools, nonprofit organizations, businesses, 5 and the people of the United States to observe Fi- 6 nancial Literacy Month with appropriate programs 7 and activities. 8 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:56 Apr 01, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\HR275.IH HR275 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS