CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU INFORMATION COLLECTION REQUEST

– SUPPORTING STATEMENT

Supporting Statement for Randomized Evaluation of the Credit Matter s Loan at St. Louis Community Credit Union and Credit Matters Counseling offered by BALANCE Financial Fitness Program

(OMB CONTROL NUMBER: 3170

- XXXX)30 DAY NOTICE

1 Table of C ontents

Terms of Clearance

................................ ................................ ................................ ....................... 2

Abstract

................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .......... 2

A. Justification

................................ ................................ ................................ ............................ 2

1. Circumstances Necessitating the Data Collection

................................ ................................ ... 2

2. Use of the Information

................................ ................................ ................................ ............. 3 3. Use of Information Technology

................................ ................................ ............................. 4 4. Efforts to Identify Duplication

................................ ................................ ................................ 5

5. Efforts to Minimize Burdens on Small Entities

................................ ................................ ....... 5 6. Consequences of Less Frequent Collection and Obstacles to Burden Reduction

................... 5

7. Circumstances R equiring Special Information Collection

................................ ...................... 5 8. Consultation Outside the Agency

................................ ................................ ........................... 6 9. Payments or Gifts to Respondents

................................ ................................ .......................... 9

10. Assurance s of Confidentiality Provided to Respondents

................................ ..................... 9 11. Justification for Sensitive Questions

................................ ................................ .................... 9

12. Estimated Burden of Information Collection

................................ ................................ ..... 10 13. Estimated Total Annual Cost Burden to Respondents or Recordkeepers

........................... 11

14. Estimated Cost to the Federal Gov ernment

................................ ................................ ........ 11 15. Program Changes or Adjustments

................................ ................................ ...................... 11 16. Plans for Tabulation, Statistical Analysis, and Publication

................................ ................ 12

Tabulation Plans

................................ ................................ ................................ ..................... 12

Publication Plans

................................ ................................ ................................ .................... 12

Project Time Schedule

................................ ................................ ................................ ........... 12

17. Display of Expiration Date

................................ ................................ ................................ . 12 18. Exceptions to the Certification Requirement

................................ ................................ ........ 130 DAY NOTICE

2 

### Terms of Clearance

None.



### Abstract

The aim of this data collection effort is to understand the impact of the Credit Matters Loan, a

bundled credit

- building loan product offered at St. Louis Community Credit Union (SLCCU), and Credit Matters counseling, a telephone based credit counseling service offered by

BALANCE 1 Financial Fitness Program, on asset building and financial behaviors of economically v ulnerable SLCCU members

. 2 The information will be collected from economically vulnerable consumers who consent to participate in th is research stud y . The target population for this survey collection is low

- income, underserved consumers who are considered

under

- banked, or have thin or no credit files and therefore have financial services needs that may

not be met . We will collect information about the financial health of these consumers, such as the amount of money they hold in savings, their credit score, and the size of their debt to income ratio. We will also collect information about their financial capability . The purpose of this data

collection effort is to understand whether the Credit Matters Loan and Credit Matters counseling

ha ve an impact on ass et building and financial capability.



### A. Justification

1. Circumstances Necessitating the Data Collection

The Dodd

- Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (Dodd

- Frank Act) established the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to regulate consumer financial products or services under federal consumer financial laws. The statutory objectives for the CFPB include ensuring that “markets for consumer financial products and services operate transparently and efficiently to facilitate access and innovation

. ” 3 T he Dodd

- Frank Act also

establishes that a function of the Bureau include s “providing information, guidance, and technical assistance regarding the offering and provisio n of consumer financial products or services to traditionally underserved consumers and communities.” 4 The Office of Financial Empowerment within the CFPB is responsible for improving the financial capability of economically

- vulnerable consumers, includi ng those who are low

- income and underserved. To that end, Office of Financial Empowerment seeks to foster a marketplace that meets the financial needs of these consumers, through responsible product and service innovation and programs that

1 BALANCE is a n organization that partners with community banks and credit unions to offer credit counseling and

financial education to its members.

2 Economically vulnerable consumers include those who are low

- income, underserved, and have limited to no

access to credit.

3 12 U.S.C. § 5511( b )(5).

4 12 U.S.C. § 5493(b)(2).30 DAY NOTICE

3 build the financ ial capability of these consumers

.

The Office of Financial Empowerment at the CFPB is interested in understanding innovative programs, such as bundled products that combine two products together in order to accomplish a dual goal or provide easy access to a secondary product (e.g., short

- term loans that require savings) and integrated service delivery , which combines services together in order to achieve

better outcomes (e.g., offering financial counseling at a job training center) , that are aimed at

se rv ing economically

- vulnerable consumers . Despite the growing use of these products and

services

, evidence from rigorous research studies that show whether or not these programs improve the fina ncial stability of economically vulnerable consumers is scarce

. Without adequate evidence of what works, it is difficult to understand the impact these products have on

consumers
, how best to improve the effectiveness and quality of such products and services , and

how best to improve consumer outcomes. Therefore

, the Office of Financial Empowerment is requesting approval from the Office of Management and Budget to conduct a randomized

evaluation of the Credit Matters Loan offered SLCCU, aimed at economically

- vulnerable

consumers
, to test whether this product improv e s savings

, credit , and the financial health of these

consumers . CFPB has contracted with the RAND Corporation, a non

- profit research institute,

and Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) , a non

- profit evaluation organization, to carry out
the se evaluations

.

The evaluation also contributes to the statutory objectives for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau related to economically underserved consumers, including:

• Ensuring that “markets for consumer financial products and services operate transparently and efficiently to facilitate access and innovation” 12 U.S.C. § 5511(b)(5);

• Establishment of a unit whose functions include “researching, analyzing, and reporting on...experiences of traditionally underserved consumers, including un

- banked and under

banked consumers.” 12 U.S.C. § 5493(b)(1)(F);

• Establishment of a unit whose functions include “providing information, guidance, and technical assistance regarding the offering and provision of consumer financial products or services to traditionally underserved consumers and communities.” 12 U.S.C. § 5493(b)(2).

2. Use of the Information

The Office of Financial Empowerment wishes to engage in this evaluation to increase its understanding of whether programs that are designed to build the financial capability o f economically vulnerable consumers through bundled products and counseling have positive

outcomes for those consumers. Positive outcomes for consumers include but are not limited to : 1) the building of credit , 2) the building of savings , 3 ) a transition from products and services that are more costly and less secure, to those that are safer, more affordable, and provide mechanisms to build wealth and access to credit, and 4) improved financial capability as demonstrated by improved understa nding of one’s balance sheet, and necessary decisions to30 DAY NOTICE

4 build and protect one’s assets.

We propose using a randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness of three financial capability interventions on economically vulnerable consumers: (1) the Credit Matters Loan, a

bundled credit

- building loan product available at St. Louis Community Credit Union (SLCCU), (2) Credit Matters Counseling offered over the telephone by BALANCE Financial Fitness Program, and (3) nudges to continue making loan paymen ts into savings after loan expiration. The Credit Matters Loan is the intervention of primary interest.

Six categories of data will be collected from SLCCU credit union members who consent to participate in the research study: 5 1) credit reports, includ ing credit score , 2) credit union account data, including savings balance

, 3) credit counseling usage data, 4 ) other savings (including informal savings and s avings in other institutions), 5 ) measures of financial capability

, and 6 ) demographic characteris tics

. Specifically, d ata will be collected in the form of

administrative data from SLCCU and BALANCE, credit report information from TransUnion

, and survey data from questionnaires . Administrative data, such as savings account usage and

balances

, credit scores , and debt repayment will be transferred from SLCCU , BALANCE, and

the credit bureau using secure data transfer processes in cases when personally

- identifiable

information (PII) is included

. Survey data will be collected by research staff members in person for the baseline survey, and over the telephone for the follow

- up survey

. 6 Administrative data will be collected in all cases where it is available, and survey data is intended to supplement

administrative data collection.

Data and information resulting from these evaluations will add to the body of knowledge regarding the effectiveness of bundl ed financial products and financial counseling , specifically for economically vulnerable consumers . This will also provide the Office of F inancial Empow erment with better information on how best to improve the effectiveness and quality of financial capability programs for economically

- vulnerable consumers , and therefore improve

consumer outcomes. For example, if the evaluation were to demonstrate that th e Credit Matters Loan effectively build s credit scores and/or savings, without significant cost to the consumer or the financial service provider, financial service providers would understand the importance of offering them at scale

.

3. Use of Informatio n Technology

In all data collection efforts, we will rely on automated and electronic data transfer when it is available. For example, we will collect account usage and balance data by electronically transferring this data from the participating organizat ion /institution . This is intended to reduce

the burden of data collection on consumers. In some cases

, survey data will need to be collected

5 The Appendix contains the Informed Consent form.

6 The endline survey is not i ncluded in this submission. This will be submitted after the baseline survey has been fielded, allowing for the incorporation of any pertinent edits or additional (or replacement) questions of particular relevance to the specific sample population.30 DAY NOTICE

5 in person in order to collect information that cannot be captured by administrative data, such as

informal savings levels and measures of financial capability

. Any surveys that will be

administered to consumers over the telephone or in person will be limited to an estimated 15 minute completion time or less

.

4. Efforts to Identify Duplication

As a precursor t o these evaluations, the Office of Financial Empowerment sponsored an

e nvironmental scan of existing and ongoing evaluations of financial capability programs. The search identified 19 ongoing evaluations from the expert interviews, online searches and req uests
for information from funders [see Table 1]

. This effort was undertaken to help guide the decision

about which programs are eligible for evaluation and to avoid evaluating programs or types of programs that are already involved in rigorous existing ev aluation s

. The search of ongoing evaluations revealed a need for more rigorous evaluations of products and services that build

assets for economically

- vulnerable consumers. Even though there are ongoing evaluations of these types of products

, very few of the existing evaluation s use rigorous designs to inform policy making in the area . In addition , our evaluation will focus on a type of product that has

never been evaluated.

5. Efforts to Minimize Burdens on Small Entities

The majority of information will be collected directly from consumers. The research team will carry the majority of the burden for the evaluation (e.g., recruiting participants, collecting data, etc.) thereby limiting the burden on the participating institutions (SLCCU and BALANCE

F inancial Fitness Program). Some limited data will be collected from the participating institutions and they may bear minor additional costs, but will be voluntarily engaged in the evaluations for the purposes of learning /evaluating the effectiveness of t he programs they are offering.

6. Consequences of Less Frequent Collection and Obstacles to Burden Reduction

Absent this rigorous evaluation of financial capability programs, the Office of Financial Empowerment will lack the data necessary for understandi ng whether th e growing trend of bundling financial capability products for economically vulnerable consumers in the form of

credit

- building loans leads to improved outcomes

.

7. Circumstances Requiring Special Information Collection

This request is consi stent with the general information collection guidelines of 5 CFR 1320.5(d)(2). No special circumstances apply.30 DAY NOTICE

6 8. Consultation Outside the Agency

The RAND/IPA project team and advisors were consulted on this project. A list of these persons is provided below (full contact details for these individuals can be found in Section B.5 of this document):

Outside research, academic, and practitioner experts were consulted at various stages of the initial phase of the project in order to inform the selection of topics and sites to be evaluated.

This includes:

1) R esearch panel members who participated in a web inar and provided ongoing support throughout the project came from the following institutions and organizations :

a. George Washington University

b. University of Maryland

c. University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School

d. Ohio State U niversity

e. CredAbility

f. RiteCheck

g. Harvard University

h. Community Financial Resources

i. Neighborhood Trust j. University of Chicago

k. N ational University of Singapore

2) I ndividuals who shared their knowledge of relevant products and services for inclusion in

the environmental scan came from the follo wing institutions and organizations:

a. Universit y of Wisconsin

b. National Fou ndation for Credit Counseling

c. Family Foundations

d. Rural Dynamics

e. Mission Asset Fund

f. Credit Builders Alliance

g. The Financial Clin ic

h. Corporati on for Enterprise Development

i. Financial Ind ust ry Regulatory Authority, Inc. j. S elf

- Help Federal Credit Union

k. D2D Fund

l. Filene Research Institute

m. New America Foundation

n. Consum er Credit Counseling Services

o. National Endo wment for Financial E ducation

p. USDA, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Division of Family and

Consumer Sciences

q. Opportunity to Assets30 DAY NOTICE

7 r. Nationa l Credit Union Administration

s. US Department of Treasury Community Development Financia l Institution Fund

t. US Department of Treasury Office of Financial Education

u. US Department of Health & Human Services Office of the Administration for

Children and Families

v. Nationa l Credit Union Administration

w. HelloWallet

x. Emerge Workplace Solutions

3) I ndividuals who shared their knowledge about barriers to savings and recommended programs for evaluation cam e from the following institutions and organizations :

a. Saint Louis University

b. CredAbility

c. RiteCheck

d. Center for Financial Services Innovation

e. University of Washi n gton
f. University of North Carolina Chapel Hill

g. The Urban Institute

h. Doorways to Dreams Fund

i. Northwestern University j. Neighborhood Trust Financial Partn ers k. Dartmouth College

In accordance with 5 CFR 1320.8(d)(1), on August 8, 2013, the Bureau published a notice in the Federal Register allowing the public 60 days to comment on this proposed new collection of information. Further and in accordance with 5 CFR 1320.5(a)(1)(iv), the Bureau has published a

notice in the Federal Register allowing the public 30 days to comment on the submission of this information collection request to the Office of Man agement and Budget.

Two sets of comments were received by OMB during the 60

- day notice period: from William Martin (Madera Realty and Mortgage), and Robert J. Batson, III (Community Financial Services of America (CFSA))

. Here we describe a summary of the comments and our responses (the full set of comments are included in the Appendix)

.

William Martin’s comments stated a concern that the Credit Matters Loan wrongly seeks to build

credit when the re is a stronger need for low

- income wage

- earners to build savings.

The research team response is four

- fold: (1) Our evaluation seeks to measure the impact of th e loan product through a rigorous randomized contro lled trial methodology. Objective evaluation of this product is not an endorsement. However, credit

- building loan products like the Credit Matters Loan at SLCCU are proliferating in the marketplace as solutions for economically vulnerable consumers that wish to build or repair their credit. It is thus critical that their impact is

better understo od for evidence

- based policy and practice. (2) The Credit Matters Loan is a bundled product which also seeks to build savings. During the course of the 12

- month loan term,30 DAY NOTICE

8 SLCCU members are encouraged not to draw down on savings that are moving from restri cted

withdrawal to unrestricted withdrawal. Our evaluation seeks to determine to what extent SLCCU

members who adopt the Credit Matters Loan also build savings. (3) While building savings is critical to financial security, subprime credit scores can restri ct consumers in a myriad of ways, for example by pushing them toward debt that is more expensive in the long run. Our evaluation seeks to determine what the impacts of the Credit Matters Loan are on credit scores, as well as what the long

- run impacts of bu ilding credit scores for economically vulnerable consumers are. (4) If a consumer is unable to make their monthly payment for the Credit Matters Loan, the loan is simply closed. This is possible because the loan is initially secured not by the credit union member, but by SLCCU. Thus, if the member is unable to make a monthly payment, SLCCU simply closes the loan and retains the remaining funds they had initially placed in the member’s account with restricted access. Only positive payments are reported to th e credit bureau, and the credit union member cannot be left with an outstanding debt burden by means of adoption of the

Credit Matters Loan.

The comments from Community Financial Services Association of America (CFSA) indicate a

concern that (1) the re is an u nderlying a ssumption in the s upporting s tatement suggesting bias, (2) not enough specific information is being included i n the information collection, and (3) payday lending is being misrepresented in the bank of potential survey questions . On the firs t point, CFSA is concerned that the statement in the abstract regarding the target population indicates an underlying assumption by the study that consumers who choose not to obtain credit through traditional means consider their financial services needs t o be unmet . We have adjusted the statement to indicate that the target population “may” not have their financial service needs

met

.

Regarding the second point, CFSA is concerned that the survey questions are too general and that there is not enough info rmation about the study participants . O ur response is that the 30 day posting contains the more detailed information being requested. First, t his submission includes the specific survey instrument that has been piloted and will be used in the study

. The questions in the instrument include some of the questions from the “Sample Question Bank” that was posted with the 60 day notice, and also include additional questions relevant to the study. The study will use a randomized encouragement design to form tr eatment and comparison groups to examine the efficacy of the Credit Matters Loan. Because these groups will be formed randomly, the composition of the treatment and control groups will be statistically identical to the composition of the credit union membe rship, conditional on having selected into the study.

Further , because we seek to understand the types of consumers who chose to take up bundled products, and the impact of these products on savings behavior, we believe all of our survey questions are justified.

Finally, regarding the concerns about the inclusion of payday loans in the survey bank, the only question that refers to payday loans in the final survey instrument is regarding total debt. All other questions regarding payday loans have been removed from the survey bank

.30 DAY NOTICE

9 9. Payment s or Gift s to Respond ents

A n on

- monetary incentive in the form of a $5 gift card will be offered to encourage credit union

members to participate in the study and complete the baseline survey

. Participants will have the

choice between a g ift card to a grocery store or gas st ation (with attached convenience store).

We will also provide a similar gift card to study participants who complete the follow

- up telephone survey 12 months after the baseline survey

.

10. Assurance s of Confidentiality Provided to Respondents

The standard privacy provisions of the programs of the sponsoring institutions will apply

. Respondents will be given the opportunity to provide informed consent verbally

. Informed consent will cover the collection of survey data and administrative data in the form of credit reports, financial administrative data from SLCCU, and administrative data on whether study participants completed a Credit Matters counseling session with BALANCE. Data will be

treated as private , unless otherwise compelled by law. Directly identifying PII ( such as respondent names , address, date of birth ) will not be made available to the CFPB and the study’s briefs and report s will not i dentify any specific individual level information

. Researchers will take appropriate steps to s ecure a ll PII to reduce the risk of breach of privacy by following RAND’s guidelines for treating sensitive information. RAND’s guidelines identify six levels of sensitivity with corresponding levels of security for storing, transferring and disposing of

s ensitive information. Secured storage of information includes limiting access to a set number of

researchers and keeping the data in a locked environment. Secure file transmissions will be done using the Accellion sftp server, a secure file transfer FIPS 140

- 2 certified appliances residing in

the contractor’s facilities . The Accellion provides account maintenance, verification of transfer integrity and notifications of transfer events to ensure a reliable exchange of sensitive data. Data

sent to the contr actor is encrypted during transmission and encrypted at rest while on the Accellion. Each site is assigned a single login ID and password that provides access to a secure Accellion workspace where they place data. Examples of proper disposal of sensitive data

include the use of s ecure file deletion software that delete s the file s and overwrite s al l empty space on the disk a mini mum of 3 times.

11. Justification for Sensitive Questions
In many instances , with the consumers’ consent, the researchers will a ccess data that is already collected as part of SLCCU administrative procedure. This includes Personally Identifiable Information (PII) in the form of Social Security Number (SSN).

SSNs are being collected in order to match respondents most accurately fo r the collection of credit report data. SSN s (along with name, birthdate, and address) will be securely transmitted to a credit bureau that will output credit report data to the research team based on these identifying data points

. SSNs will not be kept lo nger than necessary to perform this match. The most important outcome measures for the study will come from credit report data so it is critical for the quality of the research to match as many respondents as possible and successfully collect this

credit report data. Respondents will be informed that credit reports will be collected as part of30 DAY NOTICE

10 this data collection, and that their consent to participate is completely voluntary.

In accordance with section 7 of the Privacy A ct, the collection of SSN will not lead to any Federal, State or local government agency deny ing to any individual any right, benefit, or privilege provided by law because of an individual's refusal to disclose his social security

account number . When SSNs are not available from credit uni on administrative data, there will be no negative repercussions for the study participant as a result of the research.

Researchers will need to supplement credit union administrative data with surveys of participants. The surveys will ask questions relat ed to personal financial behavior, such as amount of savings, amount of debt at the household level, spending behavior and other personal

financial information. Researchers will need this information to assess financial outcomes and

financial behavior rel ating to participation in the financial capability program. Because individuals will be randomly assigned to the treatment (encouraged to adopt loan) or control (not encouraged to adopt loan) group, we need to collect the sensitive information at the indiv idual level, and aggregate data is not sufficient. The survey information will include Personally Identifiable Information (PII), such as name, phone number, mailing address, unique member identifier, and account number. PII will not be shared with the CF PB; rather, data shared with the CFPB will be stripped of identifying information.

Public Law 111

- 203, Title X, Sections 1013 and 1022, codified at 12 U.S.C. 5493 and 5512 allows for the data collection under this study.

No citation is provided for a System of Records Notice (SORN) because this is not applicable as this project does not require a SORN.

The CFPB is currently evaluating this information collection to determine if a Privacy Impact Assessment is necessary. If the Bureau determines that a PIA is necessary, it will be published on the Bureau’s

website

, www.consumerfinance.gov/privacy

- office

.

12. Estimate d Burden of Information Collection

In Exhibit s 1 and 2, we provide estimates of the collection burden on study participants. Since these evaluations will involve engaging those who are voluntarily members of SLCCU , we only

included those elements that are an additional burden due to the evaluation.30 DAY NOTICE

11 E XHIBIT 1. E STIMATE OF A NNUALIZED T IME B URDEN TO R ESPONDENTS

Number of Participants Number of Responses Per Respondent Total Responses Average Burden per Response (in hours) Total

Burden

Hours

Evaluation 1

Consent 2

, 500 1 2

, 500 .08 200

Baseline Survey 2

, 500 1 2

, 500

. 30 750 Endline Survey 2

, 500 1 2

, 500

. 30 750

Total / ////////// //////////////////// 7

, 500 ///////////// 1

, 700

E XHIBIT 2. E STIMATE OF A NNUALIZED B URDEN HOUR C OST TO R ESPONDENTS

Number of Participants Total burden

hours Average hourly

wage rate (1) Total cost

burden

Evaluation 1

Consent 2

, 500 200 $13.76 $ 2

, 752

Baseline Survey 2

, 500 750 $13.76 $ 2

, 752 Endline Survey 2

, 500 750 $13.76 $ 2

, 752

Total //////// //////// ///////////////// ///////////////// $ 8

, 256

(1) Average hourly wage was derived from the Bureau of Labor and Statistics Occupational Employment Statistics (OES)

survey , using the 37 th percentile ( Average hourly rates available at http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_nat.htm )

13. Estimate d Total Annual Cost Burden to Respondents or Recordkeepers

Data collection for this study will not result in any additional capital, start

- up, maintenance, or purchase costs to participants

.

14. Estimated Cost to the Federal Government

CFPB is supporting the conduct of this evaluation as part of the contract w ith the assistance of two contracting institutions . The estimated cost for this work including design, fieldwork, data collection, and analysis will be $ 849,536

.

15. Program Changes or Adjustments

This is a new data collection

.30 DAY NOTICE

12 16. Plans for Tabulation , Statistical Analysis, and Publication

Tabulation Plans

Starting Date Ending Date

Baseline Survey 5/12/14 7/18/14

Baseline Analysis 7/21/14 1/12/15 Endline Survey 6/15/15 8/21/15 Final Analysis 9/14/15 11/02/15

Publication Plans

Draft Date Final Date

Baseline Analysis Report 9/15/14 1/12/15

RAND Report 11/2/15 12/14/15

Project Time Schedule

The estimated timeline for the project, including the data collection detailed in this request for OMB approval is shown below. The timeline calls for data collection to begin in Spring 201 4

and end by Fall 2015. Draft and final reports will be due in Winter 2015.

Task/Activity Deliverable Due Date

OMB Clearance Submit OMB Package 02/04/14

Data Collection for Baseline Survey Interim Project Report 06/22/14

Preliminary Results on Program Take

- Up and Group Characteristics 07/22/15

Data Collection for Endline

Data 08/25/15

Produce Final Results Report on data analysis 12/12/15

Final Report Final Report 1/23/16

The final report(s) resulting from this analysis may be distributed externally by the Bureau. These reports will detail the findings of the study and will contain only aggregated results from the analysis and will not identify any individual consumer.

17. Display of Expiration Date

The Bureau plans to display the expiration date for OMB approval of the informatio n collection on all instruments.30 DAY NOTICE

1 18. Exceptions to the Certification Requirement

The Bureau certifies that this collection of info rmation is consistent with the requirements of 5 CFR 1320.9, and the related provisions of 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3) and is not seeking an exemption to these certification requirements. There are no exceptions to the certification.

Table 1

– Ongoing Evaluations by Program Type, Organization and Evaluation Design rogram Evaluating Organization Program Evaluating Organization Program Description Evaluation Description

Asset Building

‐ Individual and Child Development

Accounts Center for Social Development at
Washington
University IDAs are matched savings accounts for specific purposes and CDAs are savings or investment accounts that being
as early as birth designed to allow parents and children to accumulate savings for post‐secondary education, homeownership , or business initiatives. The program is testing a number of hypotheses related to access, incentives,

information and facilitation.

Large‐scale demonstrations of asset‐building policy strategies, including the
American Dream Demonstration, the SEED National Initiative, SEED for
Oklahoma Kids, and YouthSave.

Financial Advisory

Services CredAbility CredAbility is looking at a new example of financial counseling that is aimed at people who are stable but
living on a cash flow basis and not accumulating assets. This program is designed to help these individuals move from cash flow to asset building. Does targeted financial counseling increase assets for individuals who are stable but living on a cash flow basis?

Save Your Refund D2D savey ourrefund.org is a national sweepstakes where individuals are eligible to win weekly prizes and a grand
prize if they save in the form of a bond or savings

account at tax time What is the take‐up rate & savings generated from the Refunds to Assets (R2A) pr ogram? Is R2A targeting the right population of savers that should be
saving? How can R2A increase its effectiveness in its marketing strategy?

D2D is researching tax‐refund splitting through surveys on individual's savings
behavior, financial preferences , and financial condition. Participants were randomly assigned into treatment and control groups. Emergency Gift

Cards D2D This is a pilot program in which D2D partners with the Brooklyn Cooperative Federal Credit Union to offer a gift

card that is marketed and packaged to communicate that
its purpose is "for an emergency." The card incorporates D2D's research that: a) consumers like to gift tangible savings to their loved ones b) savings behaviors can be influenced by meeting consumers where they ar e and tapping into existing behaviors, and c) consumers are
willing to pay for commoditized savings. Can savings be commoditized in such a way to help consumers save for a rainy
day?

D2D is exploring two different branding messages, a "safe" design where funds can be "unlocked" when an emergency hits and a "rainy day" design where
consumers can "protect" loved ones from a rainy day.D2D is also interested in understanding consumer usage of the funds and the ability of features to help manage any self‐contr ol issues. D2D will explore features that create some
barriers to usage, such as requiring consumers to “break the seal” to access an30 DAY NOTICE

2 activation code, call a 1‐800 phone number before the funds can be activated, or
allow the giver to unlock the funds for the receiver.

Clarifi Innovations for
Poverty Action In Clarifi's debt management/debt reduction program,

Clarifi works with creditors on debtor's behalf to lower
payments and reduce or eliminate late fees. Clarifi sets up a monthly payment plan where debtor makes a single
monthly payment to Clarifi, and Clarifi disburses that payment appropriately to creditors. In this intervention,

DMP has behavioral economic modifications added ‐ peer support and/or regular reminders. Does the program increase the fi nancial capability of low to moderate income individuals and families struggling with debt?

Randomized control trial in which a sample of clients who join the Debt Management Plan (DMP) to repay debts through Clarifi will receive peer support and/or regul ar reminders to stick to budgets and

DMPs.

BoLT (Borrow Less Tomorrow) Innovations for
Poverty Action Community Action Project (Tulsa, Oklahoma) free tax‐
preparation service + BoLT intervention Does BoLT, a behavioral approach to debt reduction that combines a simple
decision aid, social commitment, and reminders for accelerated debt repayment plans at tax‐time, ultimately reduce credit card debt? Randomized controlled trial ‐ random assignment of tax‐preparers who consent to survey and

soft credit re port pulls to receive BoLT offer or not, with baseline credit reports identifying those with a potentially suitable debt. Credit reports collected to see if Bolt reduces credit card debt, auto balances or broader outcomes (credit
scores, delinquency, line of credit utilization, or number of active debts) over 12‐

month horizon.

Commitment

Contracts + financial

education Innovations for
Poverty Action Financial Education + commitment contracts at Neighborhood Trust (NYC) and District Government
Employees' Federal Credit Union (DC): The Super Saver CD (SSCD) is a balance building CD whereby the client makes an initial commitment to save a goal amount (up to $10,000) within a customizable maturity term (up to
18 months), by making weekly or monthly deposits

t owards that goal. Clients can start with a low initial deposit of $15. As with a traditional CD, once funds are
deposited into the SSCD they cannot be withdrawn by
the owner without closing the CD and forfeiting accumulated interest and the initial $15 dep osit. Does a combination of financial education and commitment contracts in promoting higher levels of saving, reduced reliance on credit card debt
and healthier financial portfolios among low‐income individuals in the United States (as it has been shown to do in the developing world)?

Randomized controlled trial ‐ random assignment of clients into three groups ‐ Super Saver CD offer, one on‐ one financial counseling offer, no offer (comparison group), to evaluate the effectiveness of commitment contracts and financial education to encourage sound financial behavior.

Cestas Populares Mission Asset

Fund Peer loan coupled with product‐specific peer led

education Does the loan help immigrants build credit and manage credit wisely?

The 2 year evaluation documents the financial, personal, and economic progress
of participants. The evaluation, which is not a randomized controlled trial, is being conducted by the Cesar E. Chavez Institute. Field Experiment on the Impacts of Financial Planning

Interventions for Recent Homebuyers The Ohio State University and

UW‐Madison Financial planning strategies for low‐ and moderate‐ income families and individuals during a critical financial event purchasing their first home What type of financial planning intervention ‐ online financial assessment tool, interactive financial education modules, and telephone based financial coaching

‐ is most effective?

Evaluated through a randomized field experiment a pilot group of 600
homebuyers will be randomly assigned to differen t combinations of financial planning interventions that are to be completed during the first year after home30 DAY NOTICE

3 purchase. Ongoing follow‐up with homebuyers and outcome evaluation will be
completed in subsequent years. MAGIC Mojo UNC Center for
Community

Ca pital MAGIC Mojo links a savings account to a MAGIC prepaid card and allows cardholders to make deposits through
text messaging. Is "impulse savings" ‐ transferring money from a transaction account to savings account via text message ‐ an effective way f or under‐banked people to build
savings?

By examining MAGIC Mojo data, Center researchers will examine who uses impulse savings, how long they use it and how much they save. Money $mart in Head Start (MSiHS) University of

Wisconsin‐
Extension, the

Center for Financial Security The MSiHS program offers a mixture of three financial literacy interventions

— monthly newsletters, financial education workshops,
and financial coaching

— to parents with children enrolled in Head Start or Early Head

Start. Is money smart effective in building financial capability?

Families are invited to participate in the program at the start of the school year
through Head Start staff or through UW‐Extension educators at Head Start events. Households are asked to complete a survey about their financial behaviors, knowledge, confidence, and interest in participating in financial
coaching. Follow‐up surveys are mailed in the spring.

Financial Coaching Urban Institute Financial coaching Randomized Control trial examining eff ectiveness of different financial coaching

programs.
Assets for Independence Urban Institute Urban Institute is conducting an RCT evaluation of HHS's Assets for Independence, the federally funded program that supports IDAs. Does the Assets for Independence program improve savings? Which features are

most effective?

Randomized control trial examining how design features of IDAs affect savings.

Field Studies of Financial Coaching's Capacity to Facilitate Behavior Change UW‐Madison

Center for Financial Security Financial coaching How does coaching encourages behavior change and facilitates goal attainment?

The evaluation uses data gathered from multiple financial coaching programs
across the country to see how the different programs affect be havior change and facilitates goal attainment. Prepaid Debit Card

Take

‐ Up and Use Among Lower

‐ Income Households UW‐Madison

Center for Financial Security,

Center for

Economic
Progress In partnership with the Center for Economic Progress in
Chicago, the Center for Financial Security is exploring the take‐up and use of prepaid debit cards among Volunteer

Income Tax Assistance clients. Does peer behavior boost take‐up and use of prepaid debit cards among

Volunteer Income Tax Assistance clients?

Randomized Controlled Trial: The study will be randomized and will test whether marketing that emphasizes peer behavior, all else equal, boosts take‐up.

Impact of Financial Counseling on Financial Stability UW‐Madison

Center for
Financial Security, New York City Department of

Consumer Affairs

Office of Financial

Empowerment Financial Counseling and Financial education workshops The evaluators are examining whether one‐on‐one financial counseling has added value for individuals seeking financial advice relative to financial
education workshops.

This evaluation uses credit report and survey data to provide a comprehensive
picture of counseling’s impacts on financial knowledge, behavior, and outcomes. This allows direct comparisons between individuals who receive one‐on‐one financial counseling and those who attend financial education workshops. Assessing Financial Capability Outcomes: Money FI

‐ UW‐Madison

Center for Financial Security; 4th and 5th grade students receive personal finance
instruction. Some students have savings account access through an in‐school credit union branch. Do students learn more from finance instruction when they have savings
account access through the in‐school credit union branch than when th ey do

not?30 DAY NOTICE

4 T (Financial

Instruction for Teachers) CFED Teachers receive training to provide personal finance curriculum to students in the areas of saving, personal money management, financial decision

- making, and banking services. Pilot project Program Description Research Question Evaluation Des cription