ELLICOTT CITY, MD – Howard County Executive Calvin Ball today announced the County has been accepted as a Planning Grantee in the national Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund’s (CFE Fund’s) FEC Academy, the entry point for launching a Howard County Financial Empowerment Center (FEC). Across the country, more than 30 municipal FEC’s offer professional, one-on-one financial counseling and coaching as a free public service to local residents. FEC Academy is a 15-month long process to work towards the launch of a Financial Empowerment Center initiative; it includes a $20,000 planning grant, and intensive CFE Fund technical assistance around the building block pieces of launching the FEC initiative. Partners who complete Academy are eligible to apply for up to $150,000 in match funds for program implementation from the CFE Fund.
Once launched, professionally trained FEC counselors, managed by Making Change, Inc., will help low-to-moderate income individuals and families manage their finances, pay down debt, increase savings, establish and build credit, and access safe and affordable mainstream banking products. At the core of the FEC model is the integration of counseling into other social services, such as housing and foreclosure prevention, workforce development, reentry from the criminal justice system, benefits access, domestic violence services, and more. The CFE Fund’s FEC movement is supported by seed funder Bloomberg Philanthropies, as well as the Wells Fargo Foundation and other generous partners.
Education is the key to a successful financial future and ensuring our residents are financially literate and able to understand and effectively use various financial skills, will help establish the grounding foundation needed for a lifelong relationship with money. This program, further demonstrates our commitment to promoting financial wellness and economic empowerment amongst our residents, to ensure all who call Howard County home are able to thrive.
Overseen by the County’s Office of Consumer Protection (OCP), Howard County’s FEC will teach residents how to build a better financial future by learning to make the best financial choices, while following the best financial practices. OCP helps protect Howard County consumers by mediating disputes, taking enforcement action or providing education on consumer and financial literacy topics, and provides tips on how to avoid scams or make smart purchasing decisions.
“Through the establishment of a Financial Empowerment Center, even more residents will set and accomplish savings goals while building wealth for their families,” said Tracy Rezvani, Administrator for the Office of Consumer Protection.
“MakingChange, Inc. was founded with the primary goal of helping Howard County residents become financially self-sufficient and empowered. For over 30 years, we have served thousands of individuals helping them reach their financial goals and work towards building wealth,” said Jasmine Brewer, Executive Director of MakingChange, Inc. “MakingChange is honored to be selected as the Financial Counseling Provider ultimately increasing our capacity to aid clients in building a foundation to be financially free.”
“The CFE Fund is thrilled to welcome Calvin Ball, III and Howard County, MD to the FEC Academy and help them start the work towards launching free, high-quality financial counseling as a new public service,” said Jonathan Mintz, President and CEO of the Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund. “As dozens of cities and counties across the country have already shown, professional, one-on-one financial counseling as a free public service can be transformative for residents’ financial stability, and for their communities.”
First piloted in New York City under Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg in 2008, FECs across the country have worked with almost 173,000 clients, helping them reduce individual debt by over $276 million, and increasing their families’ savings by close to $54 million. In addition, a CFE Fund evaluation showed that this program works even for residents with very low incomes and other complex financial challenges.
About the Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund (CFE Fund)
The CFE Fund supports municipal efforts to improve the financial stability of households by leveraging opportunities unique to local government. By translating cutting edge experience with large scale programs, research, and policy in cities of all sizes, the CFE Fund assists mayors and other local leaders to identify, develop, fund, implement, and research pilots and programs that help families build assets and make the most of their financial resources. The CFE Fund is currently working in over 100 cities and counties, and has disbursed over $66 million to local governments and their partners to support these efforts. For more information, please visit www.cfefund.org or follow us on Twitter at @CFEFund; learn more about the FEC Public movement at www.fecpublic.org.