[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 165 (Thursday, August 26, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52596-52597]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-21305]



[[Page 52596]]

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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY


Financial Education Core Competencies; Comment Request

AGENCY: Department of the Treasury.

ACTION: Notice and request for comment.

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SUMMARY: The Department of the Treasury, in its capacity as Chairperson 
of the Financial Literacy and Education Commission (``Commission''), 
invites the public to comment on a proposed set of financial education 
core competencies (``Core Competencies''). Comments are requested 
specifically on whether the list of Core Competencies referenced in the 
Supplementary Section is complete and whether there are portions that 
should be deleted, revised, or expanded.

DATES: Comments should be received on or before September 12, 2010, to 
be considered.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be sent via e-mail to 
[email protected] or by mail to the Department of the Treasury, 
Office of Financial Education and Financial Access, 1500 Pennsylvania 
Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20220.
    In general, the Department will make all comments available in 
their original format, including any business or personal information 
provided such as names, addresses, e-mail addresses, or telephone 
numbers, for public inspection and photocopying in the Department's 
library, Room 1428, Main Department Building, 1500 Pennsylvania Avenue, 
NW., Washington, DC 20220, on official business days between the hours 
of 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. You can make an appointment to inspect comments 
by calling (202) 622-0990. All comments received, including attachments 
and other supporting materials, are part of the public record and 
subject to public disclosure. You should only submit information that 
you wish to make publicly available.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For additional information, contact 
Dubis Correal by e-mail at [email protected] or by telephone at (202) 
622-5770 (not a toll free number). Additional information regarding the 
Commission and the Department of the Treasury's Office of Financial 
Education and Financial Access may be obtained through its Web site, 
http://www.treasury.gov/financialeducation.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Department of the Treasury, in its 
capacity as Chairperson of the Commission, invites the public to 
comment on a proposed set of financial education core competencies Core 
Competencies. The request is under authority of Title V of the Fair and 
Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 (Pub. L. 108-159), which 
directs the Commission to review, not less than annually, the National 
Strategy to promote basic financial literacy and education. As part of 
the development of the new National Strategy, the Commission determined 
that it is necessary to develop core competencies for consumers and 
financial education providers. The financial education field lacks a 
common understanding of what we collectively are trying to achieve, and 
there is no agreement on the appropriate basic content for financial 
literacy and education. The development of core competencies is a 
fundamental step in establishing a clear understanding about what 
individuals should know and the basic concepts program providers should 
cover. Furthermore, the Core Competencies are particularly important in 
establishing a baseline of knowledge, which is crucial for both 
individuals and providers of financial education to address the current 
lack of consistency in various financial literacy programs in 
identifying their goals and objectives, how program success is 
measured, and what financial information and problem-solving skills 
participants can be expected to acquire.
    The Department of the Treasury, in conjunction with the 
Commission's Core Competencies Subcommittee, identified five core 
concept areas: (1) Earning, (2) spending, (3) saving, (4) borrowing, 
and (5) protecting against risk, as well as specific core competencies 
for each area. The goal of the Core Competencies is to define what 
consumers should know and be able to do to successfully understand and 
make informed decisions about their personal finances.
    This request for comments is one of several steps in the validation 
phase of the development of the Core Competencies. Ultimately, the goal 
is to put the Core Competencies into a format and language that are 
both easily accessible and easily remembered--analogous to the ``food 
pyramid.'' This step will be undertaken once we have received public 
comment. Comments are requested specifically on whether the list of 
Core Competencies is complete and whether there are portions that 
should be deleted, revised, or expanded.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
        Core concept                Knowledge          Action/behavior
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Earning.....................  Gross versus net pay  Understand your
                                                     paycheck.
                              Benefits and taxes..  Learn about
                                                     potential benefits
                                                     and taxes.
                              Education is          Invest in your
                               important.            future.
Spending....................  The difference        Develop a spending
                               between needs and     plan.
                               wants.               Track spending
                                                     habits.
                                                    Live within your
                                                     means.
                                                    Understand the
                                                     social and
                                                     environmental
                                                     impacts of your
                                                     spending decisions.
Saving......................  Saved money grows...  Start saving early.
                                                    Pay yourself first.
                              Know about            Understand and
                               transactional         establish a
                               accounts (checking).  relationship with
                                                     the financial
                                                     system.
                              Know about financial  Comparison shop.
                               assets (savings      Balance risk and
                               accounts, bonds,      return.
                               stocks, mutual
                               funds).
                              How to meet long-     Save for retirement,
                               term goals and grow   child's education,
                               your wealth.          and other needs.
                                                    Plan for long-term
                                                     goals.
                                                    Track savings and
                                                     monitor what you
                                                     own.
Borrowing...................  If you borrow now,    Avoid high cost
                               you pay back more     borrowing, plan,
                               later. The cost of    understand, and
                               borrowing is based    shop around.
                               on how risky the     Understand how
                               lender thinks you     information in your
                               are (credit score).   credit score
                                                     affects borrowing.
                                                    Plan and meet your
                                                     payment
                                                     obligations.
                                                    Track borrowing
                                                     habits.
                                                    Analyze renting
                                                     versus owning a
                                                     home.

[[Page 52597]]

 
Protect.....................  Act now to protect    Choose appropriate
                               yourself from         insurance.
                               potential            Build up an
                               catastrophe later.    emergency fund.
                                                    Shop around.
                              Identity theft/fraud/ Protect your
                               scams.                identity.
                                                    Avoid fraud and
                                                     scams.
                                                    Review your credit
                                                     report.
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    Dated: August 18, 2010.
Alistair Fitzpayne,
Executive Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2010-21305 Filed 8-25-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-25-P