California Asset Building

For families making the difficult transition from welfare to work, developing assets is critical to achieving true economic independence. In order to prevent a complete backslide to public assistance, low income working families must begin to develop their own safety nets through personal saving for use in the event of an unexpected income shock due to illness or temporary unemployment. As personal saving is essential to achieving self-sufficiency – the stated goal of the CalWORKs program – saving should… more

California ranks second to last (ahead of New York) among US states in the percent of households who own their own homes (2005 ACS). Only 57% of Californian households are homeowners, compared to over 70% nationally. As Figure 1 illustrates, this current gap is representative of a persistent growing trend; as homeownership rates have risen nationally, California has failed to keep pace.

California should amend its state income tax forms to allow filers to purchase savings bonds -- for themselves or their children—with a portion of their refunds. By making it easier for Californians to save part of their hard-earned refunds, policymakers can help families build the personal safety nets they need to thrive in today’s economy. With this change, California would lead the nation in harnessing tax time savings to build families’ economic security.

What difference would it make if every Californian grew up knowing that she or he had a nest egg to go to college or buy a home? What benefits would accrue to individuals, families, and California as a whole? California can find out by creating California KIDS accounts.

To help un-banked Californians to open bank accounts and enter the financial mainstream, California policy makers should consider creating Banking Development Districts. New York State created these special districts to provide incentives to encourage banks to locate in communities that lack conventional financial institutions and offer enhanced products and services

“Every time I go to Market Creek with my kids now, they say ‘We own this,’” says Bevelynn Bravo, a mother of four who lives in a struggling San Diego neighborhood known as the Diamond. Bravo recently took part in a first-of-its-kind initial public offering (IPO), purchasing 25 shares in the Market Creek shopping center at $10 per share. Market Creek Plaza’s developer, the Jacobs Center for Neighborhood Innovation (a foundation), had previously partnered with teams of residents to… more

On Dec. 2, 2005, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom and City Treasurer José Cisneros invited the presidents of the city's financial institutions to a breakfast at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. Their purpose was to challenge the financial institution leaders to launch an unprecedented initiative called Bank on San Francisco. The goal would be to bring 10,000 of the city's estimated 50,000 "un-banked" individuals into the financial mainstream by helping them to… more

SACRAMENTO, CA – Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed legislation to encourage CalWORKS recipients to build money management skills and savings for their long-term financial security. The bi-partisan legislation, authored by Assembly Members Lynn Daucher (R-Brea) and Juan Arambula (D-Fresno), will allow CalWORKS recipients to save in restricted accounts (i.e., IRAs) without jeopardizing their benefits. Also, the bill will allow California counties to offer money management classes as an allowable work activity for CalWORKS recipients.

“This bill is an important first… more

The New America Foundation officially launched the Bipartisan Asset Policy Forum, in association with Senator Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima), Assembly Members Joel Anderson (R-San Diego), Kevin De Leon (D-Los Angeles), Ted Gaines (R-Roseville), Ted Lieu (D-Carson), Roger Niello (R-Sacramento), Felipe Fuentes (D-Los Angeles), and Jose Solorio (D-Santa Ana), in 2007. The forum includes a monthly educational luncheon speaker series that focuses on the challenges that low- and moderate-income California families face in building savings and assets for

Prime Minister Tony Blair swings through California next week to enjoy some down time with Governor Schwarzenegger and First Lady Maria Shriver. No doubt he’ll want to take a break from a string of bad press in the U.K. Let’s hope he and the Governor find time to talk about one of his quiet but groundbreaking successes that holds great promise for California -- Blair’s new program to give every child a stake in Great Britain’s economic future.

Each British baby… more