Educating, empowering and protecting New Yorkers
with low incomes
The Office of Financial Empowerment (OFE) is the first local government
initiative in the nation with a mission to educate,
empower, and protect New Yorkers with low
incomes so they can build assets and make the most of their financial resources.
Toward that end, OFE seeks to increase access to high-quality, low-cost
financial education and counseling; improve access to income-boosting tax
credits; connect households to safe and affordable banking and asset-building
products and services; and enforce and improve consumer protections to enhance
financial stability.
OFE's key initiatives include:
EDUCATING
Launching and coordinating large-scale public
awareness campaigns OFE spearheads public awareness campaigns to
help New Yorkers get, save, manage, and protect their money - including the Earned Income
Tax Credit (EITC) Coalition Campaign. In 2008, the NYC EITC Coalition -
the largest in the nation - led a multi-media campaign distributing two
million brochures in 12 languages throughout New York City. OFE will lead a
citywide debt awareness campaign in summer 2008.
Establishing a dynamic network of financial
education providers OFE established the Financial Education
Network (FEN), a dynamic network of government, nonprofit, and financial
sector partners, working to provide high-quality financial education. Through
the creation and sponsorship of the FEN, OFE significantly increases New
Yorkers' access to financial education, while also providing technical and
quality assistance. A cornerstone of the FEN is an easy-to-search online directory, available on the OFE
Web site, enabling consumers to find conveniently located financial education
services.
EMPOWERING
Identifying and implementing innovative
asset-building practices OFE works to identify, strengthen, and
implement innovative practices from across the nation to help New Yorkers
build assets and achieve lifelong financial well-being. OFE partners with the
City's many financial institutions to pilot safe and affordable products and
services, including structured banking programs, such as the Opportunity NYC Basic Account and
$aveNYC Club Account, at the same
time conducting rigorous research studies to evaluate their impact and
capacity for scale.
PROTECTING
Protecting New Yorkers with low incomes from
unfair and predatory practices Located within the Department of
Consumer Affairs (DCA), OFE helps target strategic enforcement work to protect
New Yorkers with low incomes from predatory and deceptive practices, including
initiatives in debt collection, used car sales, and tax preparation. OFE
coordinates both its enforcement and advocacy efforts with DCA's public
awareness and education campaigns.
