BILL NUMBER: ACR 40	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Lieu

                        MARCH 22, 2007

   Relative to Financial Literacy Month.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   ACR 40, as introduced, Lieu. Financial Literacy Month.
   This measure would declare the month of April 2007 as Financial
Literacy Month, in order to raise public awareness about the need for
increased financial literacy.
   Fiscal committee: no.



   WHEREAS, Californians' total personal income is 59 percent higher
than the next closest state and accounts for 13 percent of all
personal income in the United States; and
   WHEREAS, Four million seven hundred thousand Californians live
below the poverty level; and
   WHEREAS, In 2005, consumer bankruptcy filings numbered over 2
million, up 31.6 percent from 2004, representing one in every 53
households; and
   WHEREAS, In 2005, Chapter 7 consumer bankruptcy filings, which
provide consumers with the greatest relief from their debt, increased
47.2 percent; and
   WHEREAS, The average household consumer credit debt is about
$8,000; and
   WHEREAS, Fifty-two percent of Americans do not regularly check
their credit report; and
   WHEREAS, Forty-three percent of American families spend more than
they earn; and
   WHEREAS, A recent federal research survey found that Americans
hold a total of $1.9773 trillion in debt, not including mortgage
debt, meaning a debt of $18,654 per household; and
   WHEREAS, The average amount in retirement accounts is $49,944; and

   WHEREAS, The U.S. Savings rate for consumers in late 2005 was a
negative 1 percent, the lowest since the Great Depression; and
   WHEREAS, Forty-three percent of American households do not have
retirement accounts; and
   WHEREAS, Almost 70 percent of retired workers reported that they
now spend the same as or more than they did when they worked; and
   WHEREAS, Seventy percent of retirees said they wish they had saved
more during their working years and 59 percent said they should have
started saving earlier; and
   WHEREAS, High school seniors taking part in a national survey of
financial knowledge scored an average of 52.3 percent, which is a
failing grade; and
   WHEREAS, Over the past five years, total annual borrowing through
student loans has soared 85 percent, easily outpacing the 41 percent
rise in public college costs and the 28 percent increase at private
schools; and
   WHEREAS, Undergraduates reported freshman year as the most
prevalent time for obtaining credit cards, with 56 percent reporting
having obtained their first card at 18 years of age; and
   WHEREAS, Eighty-three percent of undergraduate students have at
least one credit card with an average balance of $2,237; and
   WHEREAS, By the time a college student graduates he or she will
have, an average, $20,402 in credit card and education loan balances;
and
   WHEREAS, Increasing the financial literacy of all economic and
ethnic groups is documented to improve attitudes, lead to improved
decisionmaking, and provide for a more secure future for the
individuals and their families who have been educated with regard to
these issues; and
   WHEREAS, Financial literacy training may be easily integrated as a
valuable component for elementary and secondary schools, colleges
and universities, libraries, community groups, and citizen town hall
meetings; and
   WHEREAS, Many groups are dedicated to increasing the financial
literacy of Americans and a broad range of quality personal finance
instructional materials and curricula have been created for this
purpose, but the audience to which this information is vital is not
being reached; now, therefore, be it
   Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate
thereof concurring, That the Legislature hereby declares the month of
April 2007 as Financial Literacy Month, in order to raise public
awareness about the need for increased financial literacy; and be it
further
   Resolved, That legislators, employers, schools, service groups,
community organizations, libraries, financial institutions, and the
media, be encouraged to provide opportunities for financial literacy
education for all Californians through a variety of means, including
attending the California Summit on Financial Literacy and
collaborating with members of the California Society of Certified
Public Accountants, California Jump Start Coalition, and others, as
they provide outreach and education; and be it further
   Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of
this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.