[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8373 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 8373
To direct the Secretary of the Treasury, acting through the Director of
the Office of Consumer Policy, to establish a program to award grants
to eligible entities to provide financial coaching services, and for
other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 20, 2026
Ms. Garcia of Texas (for herself, Ms. Norton, Mr. Carson, Ms. Titus,
Mr. Green of Texas, and Ms. Tlaib) introduced the following bill; which
was referred to the Committee on Financial Services
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To direct the Secretary of the Treasury, acting through the Director of
the Office of Consumer Policy, to establish a program to award grants
to eligible entities to provide financial coaching services, and for
other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Improving Access to Financial
Coaching Act of 2026''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
(1) many consumers, particularly low- and moderate-income
households, face significant challenges in managing personal
finances, reducing debt, building savings, and accessing
responsible credit;
(2) financial coaching services have been shown to improve
financial stability, increase long-term financial capability,
improve credit scores, and reduce vulnerability to economic
shocks;
(3) nonprofit and community-based organizations play a
critical role in training and deploying financial coaches to
deliver culturally competent, accessible, and individualized
financial coaching services to consumers in need;
(4) the Department of the Treasury, through its Office of
Consumer Policy, is well-positioned to administer a national
program supporting financial coaching initiatives that promote
household financial resilience and economic mobility; and
(5) the absence of uniform certification standards for
financial coaches results in inconsistent service quality and
restricts the professional development of practitioners,
underscoring the need for Federal support to inform a
standardization of credentialing for financial coaches and
agencies that provide these services.
(b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are--
(1) to establish a Federal program to provide grants to
eligible organizations offering financial coaching services to
consumers;
(2) to strengthen the capacity of community-based providers
to deliver effective, evidence-based financial coaching;
(3) to enhance consumer financial well-being by increasing
access to trusted, high-quality financial guidance; and
(4) to authorize the Office of Consumer Policy within the
Department of the Treasury to administer, oversee, and evaluate
the program; and to research and develop standardized practices
for certifying financial coaches and the agencies that employ
them.
SEC. 3. FINANCIAL COACHING SERVICES GRANT.
(a) Establishment.--Not later than 1 year after the date of the
enactment of this section, the Secretary of the Treasury, acting
through the Director of the Office of Consumer Policy (hereinafter
referred to as the ``Director''), shall establish a program to award
grants to eligible entities to provide financial coaching services.
(b) Eligible Entities.--To be eligible for a grant under this
section, an entity shall--
(1) be--
(A) a nonprofit, community-based organization;
(B) a community development financial institution
(as defined in section 103 of the Community Development
Banking and Financial Institutions Act of 1994 (12
U.S.C. 4702)); or
(C) a minority depository institution (as defined
in section 308(b) of the Financial Institutions Reform,
Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989 (12 U.S.C. 1463
note)); and
(2) have--
(A) been in operation for not less than 1 year;
(B) if serving a clientele or service area with a
high rate of non-English proficiency speakers,
established relationships with private, public, or
nonprofit community-based entities that provide non-
English language services and can provide referrals for
financial coaching services;
(C) established, or plans to establish, a financial
coaching program as described subsection (c); and
(D) such program--
(i) located in, or predominantly serving--
(I) 1 or more census tracts where--
(aa) with respect to a
census tract located in a
metropolitan area, the median
family income is at or below
120 percent of the metropolitan
median family income; or
(bb) with respect to a
census tract located outside a
metropolitan area, the median
family income is at or below
120 percent of the statewide
median family income;
(II) a census tract where not less
than 50 percent of the population self-
identifies as a racial or ethnic
minority; or
(III) 1 or more census tracts in a
rural area (as the term is defined by
the Director of the Bureau of the
Census); or
(ii) predominantly serving individuals
making at or below 120 percent of the Area
Median Income.
(c) Application.--An eligible entity that seeks a grant under this
section shall submit to the Director an application at such time, in
such manner, and containing such information as the Director requires,
including a description of--
(1) organizational information and financial coaching
services of such entity;
(2) staff qualification and experience, including a
detailed description of any certification, credentialing or
continuing education required of its financial coaches;
(3) a work plan that outlines activities, target audiences,
goals, and anticipated results;
(4) the financial stability of such entity, including
financial statements and a proposed budget for the financial
coaching program of such entity; and
(5) languages served by such entity.
(d) Eligible Uses.--The Secretary shall award grants to eligible
entities under this section to be used--
(1) by the eligible entity for general purposes of such
entity; or
(2) by the eligible entity for the purpose of awarding
subgrants and technical assistance to other eligible entities
that provide financial coaching.
(e) Financial Coaching Best Practices.--The Director shall carry
out such activities as necessary to help elevate best practices in the
financial coaching industry, and to facilitate the development of
standardized protocols for credentialing financial coaches and agencies
that provide these services.
(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--
(1) In general.--There is authorized to be appropriated to
the Director $100,000,000 for fiscal years 2026 through 2028,
of which--
(A) 55 percent of such appropriated sum be used for
the purposes described in subsection (d)(1); and
(B) 45 percent of such appropriated sum be used for
the purpose described in subsection (d)(2).
(2) Proportions.--The Director may update the proportions
of funds described in paragraph (1) if the Director determines
that there are insufficient amounts to carry out either
purposes described in paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (d).
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