American Indian Report - June 2008 - (Page 25)

Resources include the JumpStart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy, which has a survey that measures the financial literacy of high school seniors. The survey and the answers are on their Web site. The Treasury Department just launched a “financial literacy challenge” for high school students. Those who score high on the test get a certificate from the President’s Council on Financial Literacy. Click here for more information. Air: NFEC recommends that Native communities create and support Native Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) that offer credit counseling, credit repair and debt reduction activities. CDFIs provide financial education about alternatives to predatory businesses, which include free tax preparation sites and affordable loan products. Are there models you recommend? Meeks: A number of Native CDFIs are in existence and most of them do financial education programs. Successful ones include: Citizen Potawatomi Nation and the Lakota Fund, which runs an Individual Development Account (IDA) program. Oweesta is trying to help more tribes start building these programs, and useful resources can be found on their Web site. Air: NFEC recommends Congress should appropriate $5 million specifically designated for rural and Native communities in Section 4 of the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Demonstration Act of 1993, which is seed capital for non-profit community development organizations to expand their capacity to provide financial education services. Why? Meeks: This is a lot of work on the ground level, and there are never enough resources to go around. It is important to bring attention to this, especially now with this economic downturn because of the whole housing mess. This is the time to get that message across. In the end, [providing financial education] would cost less than trying to fix this whole mortgage foreclosure issue. If I had my wish, financial education would be a prerequisite to everything, before any loan is given. Air: Free tax preparation programs, such as Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA), provide alternatives to predatory commercial tax preparation locations, which are prevalent in Native communities. How does NFEC support this? Meeks: NFEC is recommending that Congress adequately fund the VITA matching grant program and enact legislation that provides specific consumer protections against the commercial practice of encouraging and issuing high-cost rapid refund loans. NFEC also recommends that tribal governments and Native communities create and support VITA sites, such as the Navajo Partnership for Housing. We have got to keep the noise level up on this. I remember the first year we were whispering in the wind. Last year we were at least shouting. Each year we have more depth. This is about getting people to a place of economic independence. We have to start sending the message: It does not have to be that way — poverty is not a part of our culture. n American Indian Report June 2008 25 http://www.jumpstart.org/fileindex.cfm http://www.treasury.gov/offices/domestic-finance/financial-institution/fin-education/council/nflc.shtml http://www.potawatomi.org/Services/Small Business Loan Program/Main/default.aspx http://www.lakotafund.org/services.htm http://www.lakotafund.org/services.htm http://www.oweesta.org/ http://www.navajopartnershipforhousing.org/

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of American Indian Report - June 2008

American Indian Report - June 2008 Contents Ethics & Standards of Conduct: Governing Work Habits of Elected Officials Congress: Activity on the Hill Catching Up with the Curve Grants: Police Equipment Assistance from the Federal Government The Pottery Project Neighbors Helping Neighbors Where They Belong Spreading the Word “Poverty is Not a Part of Our Culture” Strategic Planning: Step 1 — An Assessment of Now Saving the Samala Language

American Indian Report - June 2008

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