I 
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3520
To reduce duplication in Federal financial literacy and financial programs, 
identify more effective ways to provide financial education, and facilitate 
greater cooperation at the Federal, State and local levels and between 
government units and entities in the private sector by requiring the 
establishment of a national strategy for assuring financial education, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
NOVEMBER 19, 2003
Mrs. KELLY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Financial Services 
A BILL 
To reduce duplication in Federal financial literacy and finan-
cial programs, identify more effective ways to provide 
financial education, and facilitate greater cooperation at 
the Federal, State and local levels and between govern-
ment units and entities in the private sector by requiring 
the establishment of a national strategy for assuring 
financial education, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Strategy for Assuring 
Financial Empowerment Act’’ or the ‘‘SAFE Act’’.
SEC. 2. STRATEGY FOR ASSURING FINANCIAL EDUCATION. 
(a) FINDINGS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Congress finds it is im-
perative to—
(A) reduce overlap and duplication in Fed-
eral financial literacy and financial education 
programs and in public and private educational 
activities, in order to increase effectiveness and 
coordination and to better utilize resources; 
(B) identify the most effective types of 
public sector financial literacy programs and 
techniques as measured by improved consumer 
decision-making; 
(C) coordinate and promote financial lit-
eracy and financial education efforts at the 
State and local level, including partnerships be-
tween Federal, State and local governments, 
non-profit organizations and private enterprises; 
(D) obtain recommendations for inte-
grating economic education and personal-fi-
nance education into primary, secondary and 
post-secondary curricula; and
(E) provide multilingual materials and pro-
grams under the strategy for assuring financial 
education whenever appropriate in order to ef-
fectively reach the broadest number of people. 
(2) ADDITIONAL FINDINGS.—The Congress also 
finds that as many as 1 in 10 American families, or 
about 10,000,000 households, do not have a rela-
tionship with a traditional financial institution such 
as a bank, thrift institution, or credit union, despite 
the significant advantages of such a relationship, in-
cluding the following: 
(A) The establishment of a deposit account 
with a financial institution leads to greater 
knowledge of personal financial fundamentals. 
(B) Account ownership provides an oppor-
tunity to build assets, because a deposit account 
is a tool that can be used to save for home-
ownership, educational opportunities, or retire-
ment. 
(C) The unbanked typically pay higher 
costs in transaction fees for financial services 
than do individuals with banking relationships. 
(D) Opening and maintaining an account 
with a financial institution provides opportuni-
ties to obtain other products and services—such
as home loans, car loans, education loans, or 
small business loans—from the institution, and 
can help individuals establish a credit history 
for their future borrowing needs. 
(E) Owning an account provides a record 
of financial transactions that can be drawn on 
in the case of a dispute. 
(F) Account ownership provides the oppor-
tunity for safer, more secure types of financial 
transactions, such as direct deposit and check-
writing, reducing the risk that paychecks could 
be stolen or lost and reducing the risk of be-
coming the victim of a robbery or burglary trig-
gered by carrying large sums of cash. 
(b) DEVELOPMENT AND TRANSMITTAL TO THE CON-
GRESS.—
(1) DEVELOPMENT.—The President, acting 
through the Secretary of the Treasury, the Office of 
Financial Education established by the Secretary in 
the Department of the Treasury, and in consultation 
with the Secretary of Housing and Urban Develop-
ment and other officials of the administration, as 
appropriate, shall develop a national strategy for fi-
nancial education, to be known as the Strategy for
Assuring Financial Empowerment (hereinafter in 
this section referred to as the ‘‘SAFE strategy’’). 
(2) TRANSMITTAL
TO
THE
CONGRESS.—By 
February 1 of 2005 and by that date of each suc-
ceeding year, the President shall transmit to the 
Congress a national strategy developed in accord-
ance with paragraph (1). 
(3) APPEARANCE
BEFORE
THE
CONGRESS.—
Before March 1, 2004, and before March 1 of each 
subsequent year, the Secretary of Treasury shall ap-
pear before the Committee on Financial Services of 
the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate 
at hearings regarding the development of a national 
strategy for assuring financial education. 
(4) WORKING GROUP.—The first national strat-
egy transmitted to the Congress in 2005 shall con-
tain recommendations and a proposal for forming a 
Financial Literacy and Education Working Group to 
be chaired by the Secretary of the Treasury. 
(c) ISSUES TO BE ADDRESSED.—The SAFE strat-
egy shall address any area the President considers appro-
priate, acting through the Secretary of the Treasury, the 
Office of Financial Education established by the Secretary 
in the Department of the Treasury, and in consultation
with the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, 
the Financial Literacy and Education Working Group es-
tablished pursuant to the proposal under subsection 
(b)(4), and other officials of the administration, as appro-
priate, including the following: 
(1) GOALS, OBJECTIVES, AND PRIORITIES.—
(A) IN
GENERAL.—Comprehensive, re-
search-based goals, objectives, and priorities for 
increasing the financial literacy of all citizens, 
with particular attention to those with low and 
moderate incomes, Native Americans, immi-
grants, youths from ages 10–25 and those of 
pre-retirement age. 
(B) GOALS TO BE INCLUDED.—Such goals 
shall include helping individuals, especially 
those in the target groups, learn to develop—
(i) access to and responsible use of ac-
counts at financial institutions; 
(ii) knowledge of the credit-granting 
process, including the importance and ben-
efits of building credit; 
(iii) homeownership; 
(iv) planning for unexpected cir-
cumstances, further education, retirement 
and estate planning;
(v) budgets and long-range financial 
planning; 
(vi) an appreciation of the value of 
charitable giving; 
(vii) an understanding of the impact 
of taxes on earned income and intelligent 
planning to minimize the effects of taxes; 
(viii) a strategy for and an apprecia-
tion of the value of broad-based, well-
planned, long-term investments; and 
(ix) patterns of responsible borrowing 
and consumer behavior. 
(2) COORDINATION.—Coordination of financial 
education efforts and programs within the Executive 
Branch and with the Board of Governors of the 
Federal Reserve System, the Securities and Ex-
change Commission, other Federal banking agencies, 
the National Credit Union Administration Board, 
and such other Federal agencies as the Secretary of 
the Treasury determines to be appropriate. 
(3) COORDINATION WITH AND ENHANCEMENT 
OF THE ROLE OF THE PRIVATE FINANCIAL SECTOR 
IN
FINANCIAL
EDUCATION.—The enhancement of 
partnerships between the private government agen-