BILL NUMBER: ACR 38 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 27, 2009
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Members Duvall and Coto
( Coauthors: Assembly Members
Gaines and Lieu )
FEBRUARY 26, 2009
Relative to Financial Aid and Literacy Month.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
ACR 38, as amended, Duvall. Financial Aid and Literacy Month.
This measure would commemorate declare
April 2009 as Financial Aid and Literacy Month and
encourage schools to ensure that pupils have literacy pertaining to
financial statements and credit reports to raise
public awareness about the need for increased financial literacy
.
Fiscal committee: no.
WHEREAS, Californians' total personal income is 60 percent
higher than the next closest state and accounts for 13 percent of all
personal income in the United States; and
WHEREAS, Thirteen percent of Californians live below the
poverty level; and
WHEREAS, In 2007, credit card delinquencies nationwide jumped
26 percent from the previous year; and
WHEREAS, Average credit debt among low- and medium-income
households is $8,650; and
WHEREAS, Average credit card debt among indebted young adults
between 25 and 34 years of age increased by 55 percent from 1992 to
2001, inclusive, to $4,088, and average credit card debt among
persons between 18 and 24 years of age increased by 104 percent; and
WHEREAS, The share of families with any type of debt climbed
to 77 percent during 2004 through 2007 and the largest increase was
for families headed by persons 75 years of age or older; and
WHEREAS, Over a third of young adults own credit cards, and
young people receive little in the way of financial education; and
WHEREAS, Current mortgage disclosures frequently fail to
convey key information to consumers, often are misunderstood, and may
contribute to information problems in the mortgage market; and
WHEREAS, A large majority of workers who have not put money
aside for retirement have little in savings at all, and seven in 10
of these workers say their assets total less than $10,000; and
WHEREAS, The median amount in retirement accounts is $2,000;
and
WHEREAS, The savings rate for American consumers has risen to
over 3 percent; and
WHEREAS, Only 41 percent of workers indicate they or their
spouses currently have a defined benefit pension plan, yet 59 percent
say they are expecting to receive income from such a plan during
retirement; and
WHEREAS, Total United States consumer debt, which includes
installment debt, but not mortgage debt, reached $2.6 trillion in
December 2008, up from $2.551 trillion at the end of 2007; and
WHEREAS, Ninety-eight percent of retirees regret how they
spent their money before retiring, and 97 percent of baby boomers
share this regret and are uncomfortable with how much they have
accumulated during their preretirement years; and
WHEREAS, The Governor has proclaimed April 2009 as "Financial Aid
and Literacy Month;" now, therefore, be it
Month"; and
WHEREAS, High school seniors taking part in a national survey
of financial knowledge scored an average of 48.3 percent, a failing
grade; and
WHEREAS, Only seven states require high school pupils to take
a personal finance course to graduate, and only nine states require
high school pupils to pass a test on personal finance to graduate;
and
WHEREAS, As pupils progress through school, credit card usage
swells. Ninety-one percent of final year college students have a
credit card compared to 42 percent of freshmen. Fifty-six percent of
final year students carry four or more cards, and 74 percent of
undergraduates use credit cards for school supplies; 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 in these
issues; and
WHEREAS, The percentage of workers who are very confident
about having sufficient financial resources for a comfortable
retirement fell from 27 percent in 2007 to 18 percent in 2008; and
WHEREAS, Seventy-five percent of college students carried
credit cards in 2007, up from 67 percent in 1998; and
WHEREAS, Financial literacy training may easily be 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 materials and curricula have been created for this purpose,
but audiences to which this information is vital are not being
reached; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate
thereof concurring, That the Legislature hereby commemorates
declares April 2009 as Financial Aid and
Literacy Month and encourages schools to ensure that pupils
have literacy pertaining to financial statements and credit reports;
and be it further 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
and to collaborate with members of the California Society of
Certified Public Accountants, the California Jump$tart 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.