Oxley Statement on Unveiling of the National Strategy for Financial Literacy

Oxley Statement on Unveiling of the National Strategy for Financial Literacy

House Financial Services Committee Chairman Michael G. Oxley (OH) participated in a ceremony today with Treasury Secretary John W. Snow, and Rep. Judy Biggert (IL), a Member of the House Financial Service Committee and Founder and Co-Chair of the House Financial and Economic Literacy Caucus, for the unveiling of the Financial Literacy and Education Commission's National Strategy for Financial Literacy at the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

The following statement was prepared for delivery:

"Mr. Secretary, Fellow Members of Congress, Members of the Financial Literacy and Education Commission:

"I am very pleased to be here for the unveiling of the National Strategy for Financial Literacy, and to talk about the importance of financial literacy in America. Education for all is one of the great features of our democracy. It speaks volumes about our country that we have reached the point where we place a strong emphasis on financial literacy and consider it a building block of our great nation.

"In addition to praising the Commission on the completion of their report, I commend my Colleagues Rep. Judy Biggert from Illinois and Rep. Rubén Hinojosa from Texas for their diligent efforts to form the Financial Literacy Caucus in the Congress.

"When we passed the FACT ACT in November of 2003, which was a tremendous bipartisan victory for the Committee that I chair, I said that the FACT ACT will do more for financial literacy than any legislation passed in decades.

"In addition to mandating the report we are here to unveil and promoting financial literacy, the FACT ACT has given Americans powerful tools to prevent and to deal with identity theft. The ACT allows everybody to receive a free credit report each year from all three national bureaus and to have access to their credit scores.

"For all the same reasons that we stress literacy from a very young age we need to emphasize financial literacy. Empowerment of the individual, personal responsibility, and freedom of choice are some of the micro results of a good financial education. From these beginnings the macro affects are endless. None of the growth in our economy and the plans that we have for our country are possible without sound financial education.

"As we move forward into the next chapter of building financial literacy as envisioned in the FACT ACT, its impact cannot be overstated. A higher savings rate, larger capital, pool, and lower interest rates are all part of the macro effects that financial literacy can have on our economy.

"The United States has changed from a nation of savers to a nation of investors. Two-thirds of our national savings used to be in bank accounts. Now it's in some form of equities. That is a good thing because more people are using the strength of our capital markets to build up bigger nest eggs for retirement, a first home, or their child's college education. This is the ownership society in action: giving people a direct stake in building a brighter future.

"Again, I commend the Financial Literacy and Education Commission on the completion of the National Strategy for Financial Literacy and look forward to its implementation.

"Mr. Secretary, thank you for welcoming us here today."

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