Your Money, Your Goals Toolkit (Part 3 of 4)
April 16, 2019 @ 2-3 pm ET

NWX-CFPB HQ (US)

Moderator: Heather Brown
April 16, 2019
1:00 pm CT


Coordinator:	Thank you all for standing by. At this time I would like to inform all participants you will be on a listen only mode and till the question and answer session of today's conference call. Today's call is being recorded. If you have any objections, you may disconnect at this time. 

	I would now like to turn the call over to Dr. Heather Brown. Thank you. You may begin.

Heather Brown:	Thank you, (Lisa). Welcome everybody. Thank you for attending. This is part three of Your Money Your Goals. And the final part will be next Tuesday, April 23 from 2:00 to 3:00. 

	I'm going to kick it off as usual with my introductory slides and disclaimers and them I'm going to hand it off quickly to Scott Bennett who's with us again for the third time and has done a wonderful job the last two times. Both of those previous sessions are on our Website and I'll show you where you can find those in just a second.   

	The disclaimer -- this presentation is being made by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau representatives on behalf of the Bureau. It does not constitute legal interpretation guidance or advice of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Any opinions or views stated by the presenters are the presenter's own and may not represent the bureau's views.

	The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau regulates the offering and provision of Consumer Financial products and services under the federal consumer financial laws and educates and empowers consumers to make better and informed decisions.

	The program that's hosting this Webinar and the others that some of you may have attended is the financial education exchange -- FinEx, CFPB FinEx. We have over 5,000 members and our members are all financial educators, coaches, counselors, housing counselors, social workers, clergy, and anybody that is an intermediary or working for an intermediary that provides financial literacy to consumers. We aim to stretch the reach of the CFPB by helping to provide tools, resources, education programs, conferences, and also connectedness through regional meetings of all intermediaries and financial literacy educators for adults. 

	And there's always some overlap between sometimes we have teachers that may also teach. But we do have a teachers program that emphasizes education K through 12 and meets the guidelines of the many states that have required financial education as well as we have a parent program and a library's program. And I know typically have some librarians on as well. 

	So you're welcome to join the FinEx email list if you got your invitation through someone else. You can see the email at the bottom CFPB_FinEx@CFPB.gov. And that's the way to join. Basically just send an email to that box requesting to join and will add you to our email list. 

	Another quick way to join you can see on this slide. If you go to the URL link at the bottom, you will see on the right this email address. You can actually put your email in to sign up directly. You can also click the view details and enroll that's to the left of the computer graphic if you're interested in seeing additional Webinars that we've had in the past. 

	And the previous two are there now -- the two sessions that we had before this one. So if you want to catch up on the series or review your notes, you're welcome to that. And I will be sending all the slides to everyone that attends the sessions.

	Okay. So the first link basically is just the page that I showed you and that's where to go to get all the information and resources on financial education for adults. The second is the Web inbox that I just gave you, our email box. And if you send a request or any questions you have or anything you need to that box, I will respond as quickly as possible -- usually within 24 to 48 hours and get back with you with an answer or direct your email to the person in our agency that should handle it.  

	And if you're not a member of our LinkedIn exchange, feel free to use the third link and sign up to be a member. I go through every couple of weeks and accept people that have signed up. So if for some reason you signed up but haven't gotten accepted, I will be accepting you soon. And you can post anything that you would like to promote from your organization to that site. You can also ask questions about financial literacy topics on that site. Pretty much anything that relates to personal financial education is relevant. We just ask that you do not market for profit products in those kinds of things there.

	Our next Webinar is going to be on Tuesday April 23rd from 2:00 to 3:00 Eastern Time. And it's the finale of this your goals your tool - I mean Your Money Your Goals toolkit session. And we look forward to having you all attend and please spread the word to your colleagues as well.

	And with that I'm going to change the slides and hand it over to the presenter, Scott Bennett. Scott it's all yours. 

Scott Bennett:	Great. Thank you very much Heather. I appreciate it. And thank you everyone for joining us today. I see a handful of familiar names, so thank you very much for coming back and joining as well. 

	So again today we're going to hitting the focus guide. So excited about that. As usual I do have my disclaimer as well reiterating basically Heather's point which is that I am not an employee of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. I am a consultant with (ICF). And we are presenting this information on behalf of the CFPB. So any views or opinions that I state are not representative of the CFPB's views. 

	And today what we're going to get through is introduction to the focus on Native communities, people with disabilities, and focus on reentry. So these are a collection of unique or modified tools that complement Your Money Your Goals. So the two of them together can I help you have really affective conversations if you work with those particular populations -- help them address those unique issues that they face. 

	Again, just you know, maybe it's going to have a much more effective conversation or maybe even just start the conversation in a much more respectful manner. So again I hope this is, you know, if you work with those populations it's a really effective resource for you. 

	So for the last two weeks  we presented the Your Money Your Goals toolkit. You know, that's something that if you weren't able to make it the last few weeks, check out those videos, those recordings. Again, they're a nice complement to these focus guides that we will be covering today. 

	And then what we'll be covering next week, as Heather also mentioned, is that it's going to be the last piece of our four Webinars. And that one's going to be over the booklets behind on bills, debt getting in your way, and the new want credit to work for you booklet. So, you're going to love those booklets -- really excited. They're very popular. Clients love them. They respond very well to them.

	Really effective ways to start the conversation in a very non-threatening way -- especially when you're talking about such a touchy subject as money. So hopefully you're able to join us then.

	So first one we're starting off with is the focus on Native communities. So again the benefits of using Your Money Your Goals along with this focus guide is it's going to help you work with community members to help them take care of their financial needs and obligations, but also at the same time contributing to the community. They're going to be able to make informed decisions about protecting and growing these community assets out of their own assets, mostly making those informed decisions about balancing not just today's needs but also planning for the next generation.

	So what's inside the focus on Native communities? So the tools listed here are designed to use in addition to the set of tools that are found in the Your Money Your Goals toolkit. Yes, in addition to some new tools, the focus on Native communities also provides some information on the financial topics and in a way that is relevant to the lives of people in Native communities.

	So the focus guide also contains some additional information, maybe some tips and again those modified tools that are actually based on the wisdom of the tribal staff in organizations that serve Native communities. The CFPB reached out to a number of tribes and got a lot of input to make sure that this was the best it could be to make it as effective as possible.  Again, its goal is to meaningfully connect the content and tools from Your Money Your Goals to the Native communities in which you live and work. 

	So there's lots of different ways that you can use this information -- Your Money Your Goals as well as this focus guide. One on one situations -- so like a tribal social service staff member may be providing case management to individuals in the community or even an elder mentoring young adults in the community. There's lots of different ways. These are just you know, just some of the many ways they can do this anytime that you think it's appropriate to have those types of conversations. That's completely up to you. 

	Feel free to use these tools in ways that you think are the most effective as possible and definitely take advantage of it.  So they can also be used in group settings. And that's where, you know, maybe you have community meetings or tribal gatherings -- you know, people coming together. We can have a conversation as a group around money. 

	This can be a great way to empower each other, to have those types of conversations and really open up about these things that we're all facing but maybe we're just you know, not bold enough to really bring it up. When surrounded by your community, it can be empowering and make it more comfortable sometimes to have those types of conversations. 

	So yes, that's why I love, you know, brown bag lunches or lunch and learn series. I love those. One, people love food. I'm one of them. I think it's fantastic. And so anytime that we can use that as a nice little encouragement to get people together. Well, if they're all sitting around eating and chatting, maybe it's a good time to bring in some financial empowerment conversations -- show them a tool or two, bring up the conversations. 

	And maybe just that's the reinforcement action that maybe it's a nice little handout that you can be giving people.  So again, one on ones, group settings -- both of them work very well.

	So I love goals. You know, again if you joined us for the last part with Your Money Your Goals, I love the goals section. It is I see it as the motivation. That's what's going to get - it's that foundation for building you know, building to the success that we want to see. 

	It's that reminder, that motivation that's going to help us actually take a lot of these actions. So that's why I like starting with this section. I think it's great and fact that within this tool set we're setting goals but using the values. So this is something that was recently updated and Your Money Your Goals toolkit as well. Added to just make that conversation so much more effective. So it's in this focus guide as well. 

	But there is also again giving you a little context on how you can use these tools. You've got this header section. It's going to help us understand what to do and what to say. It's information for the service provider to help them and start that conversation before providing that tool. If you're new to financial empowerment, if this is just something that you're not used to doing very much, this initial header page on each of these tools is going to help you give that context and make sure you feel very comfortable before you again use these tools, present these tools to people you work with. 

	So here is the actual tool. So this is again the tool for using values to set goals. It gets to be a really truly effective goal. It's extremely important that we reflect on our values. What is it that makes us tick? That way it's going to when we use that information, we reflect on that information before we set our goals. That goal is going to be much more relevant and it's going to be that much more powerful. 

	So that's why this tool can be so very effective. Looking through those questions and see what are some traditional values shared by the members of the community. How do these traditional values influence you? How do these traditional values influence your goals? And so using that type of open questions can help us make a much more meaningful goal. 

	So now we're going to get into income. This is a big piece where we really want to make sure everyone is looking at the big picture. And this is an extremely important with the Native communities because while many of your community members may income from you know primary jobs, 9 to 5 jobs or businesses that they own and operate, they also might receive income from maybe dividends distributed by the tribal government or money from a trust account, the IIMs -- Individual Indian Money.

	This money may come from tribal enterprises including gaming or the sale and lease of land or other natural resources owned by the tribe. But it's also just really helpful to include all sources of income in the conversation. So we have a very active idea of what we have to work with. 

	And so using that, so as I mentioned this is an option. This might be a source of this income is that we also have a tool here, this unique tool. Obviously it makes sense for when you're working with native communities but again that's how these tools are those unique ones that this might not be something you'd use with the general, you know, with everybody else you work with but if you're working with this population it's really helpful to help us identify and get the most out of their IIM. It's just again their Individual Indian Money. 

	So you know, helping us think about it -- when are we going to be getting it? How much do we think you're going to be getting? Is this going to be a one time or is it going to be a regularly occurring payment? 

	So it's going to help young adults and others who are receiving the IIM or any other large payments consider how they can build a plan around their spending and their savings that's going to really reflect their values and help achieve their goals.

	So when we're getting into this, you know, many people do not think about their income beyond just the amount they receive. And so understanding the issues around timing and even predictability can help us take control of those finances. So this is the tool that's going to help us look at the pros and cons around spending or saving the IIM. 

	So that way we're making the best choices for ourselves and really thinking it all through and not just acting on again what's in front of me, what's you know, maybe there's some wants out there or maybe there is just something that I think is a need but there's many things that I could do instead of that to make sure that, you know, what am I doing. And is what I'm doing in my best interest? And so this is what's going to help us think it through.

	So now we have an annual planning tool. Again, what I'm trying to do from this because there's a lot of tools in these focus guides but I really want to highlight some of the ones that I think are really particularly unique and really effective. And so this annual planning tool is another one of those.      

	It's when you think about the people who have sporadic or even seasonal income or periodic expenses on the other side of the equation can have a lot of trouble with managing a cash flow budget. You know, how do we best plan for these types of things that are coming up -- either, you know, coming in or going out?

	So this annual planning tool is going to help us with that. It's going to help us help someone else think through when their money may be coming in. Again, how much is expected and when do I think it's going to be received. 

	So now on the other side of the equation here, it also has something that helps us look at the spending side of things. So if you have irregular expenses -- ones that come up seasonally or maybe just a couple times a year -- this tool when you look at both sides of the equation it's going to help us know and really help us have the money when we need it. That's the big piece of this is making sure we're bringing the whole picture into the equation so that way we can prepare for things -- have the money when we need it.

	So, again another piece of it here. And I like this. This is -- so I'll be highlighting a new tool from one of new booklets, the debt booklet that also has kind of a piece of this, this annual planning tool. 

	This is something we all could benefit from. But it's again very helpful when you might have those types of periodic income and spending. And when we bring it both together again, we're trying to paint that picture to be able to say like what things do I have coming up from the income and the spending side and so that way I can make really good choices around the planning of that. 

	Another big piece of this focus guide is around elder financial exploitation. So this is sadly much more common than it should be. It should not exist but it does. Elders are one of the most important resources in the community. They're often in an uncomfortable position of they're relying on others for big tasks like maybe home repairs or even daily chores or cooking and cleaning or even to the financial management. 

	And so this can put them in a position where other people have the opportunities to abuse and exploit them. So the traditional value of respect for elders is not a guarantee against elder financial exploitation. But that value can be used to encourage community members to all come together to learn about all types of elder abuse and empower everyone as a community to take action to prevent and report these crimes.

	So the three pieces is within this - there's three tools within this focus guide to help us with this issue. So first round identifying the exploitation, getting help for the exploitation, and then preventing it. So those are the three tools within this section. 

	Again, so here's the identification one. It's helping us look through and say helping us spot those potential instances of financial abuse or exploitation. In many ways these are really just red flags and he walked through this and help by checking off the box. Is it suspected? Is it actually observed? And has it been reported?

	So now I'm getting help for elder financial exploitation is the next piece. So again these all tools work together and this. So if you suspect that in elder has been a victim of financial abuse or exploitation, this tool is going to help us guide you did get that help and report this to maybe aging service providers, law enforcement, or maybe even legal assistance. So getting the help you need to take care of this terrible situation.

	And of course the big part is let's see what we can do about being proactive about this. Let's prevent this elder financial exploitation. So it's all about creating that culture that prevents exploiting elders' finances. This tool is going to include strategies for communities as well as for families because preventing exploitation takes a coordinated community response. We all need to be proactive about this, all putting their input and being involved with this so we can create a system that as much as humanly possible prevents this from happening.

	Okay. So that was the focus on Native communities. Again I'm just doing a quick introduction, you know, just an overview of all three of these focus guides. Obviously, I can only cover so many, so much in this given time. So I hope if this is something that you work with, if these are communities you work with, please take a look at the tool. Go on line to Your Money Your Goals Website. Grab the tool. You can even download the electronic version. Go ahead and order some physical copies for yourself.

	And take a look through the tools. And hopefully you've got a pretty good idea from this already of like what they can be used for, how could help you again work with these particular populations. 

	So the next one here is focused on people with disabilities. So we're switching over to this population now and the unique tools within here. Obviously, this is a huge issue. Americans with Disabilities are confronted with daily with significant obstacles as they go through their lives. So like lower rates of participation in the labor force, higher rates of poverty. People with disabilities may have unique financial needs. So to help them achieve financial empowerment, the tools within this module have been created to help them navigate savings are in paying for assistive devices. 

	They're also - within here there's again some great ways to start the conversation. You know, maybe just wanted to make sure that maybe this is something that they're not - bring up issues that they're not used to having. We want to do this in a very respectful manner.  So focus on people with disabilities is designed to help people with disabilities navigate both the challenges and the opportunities as they're making their financial choices. 

	So this section first starts off with you know, information about the Bureau. Just like the Your Money Your Goals toolkit -- giving some context there -- but then the section on people with disabilities and financial decision making provides important context on financial challenges within the disability community.

	And the getting started section is going to help you as sort of providers and even working with volunteers helped to start the money conversation with the people that they work with. And that includes the tool around starting the money conversation. You know, again let's make this as easy as possible and at the same time make it effective. 

	So in the next section the table of contents is the heart of the focus on people with disabilities. It's called the module section for Your Money Your Goals. And it obviously mirrors the nine modules within the Your Money Your Goals toolkit. 

	And so this part right here as you can see it lists the first five modules and each of the new tools within the focus on people with disabilities. These first five modules are obviously setting goals. That one includes a tool around paying for assistive devices. 

	In Module 2 around savings, we're going to get in the tool that helps individuals identify whether or not an Able account is right for them and how to make choices around finding the best one for them. 

	In Module 3 it's all around income and benefits. And that's going to include two tools around income and benefits tracker and an SSI estimator, which I'm going to highlight here shortly. I think it's a great tool. 

	Module 4 we get into paying bills. And that's going to have a modified spending tracker in there. 

	And then Module 5 around cash flow is going to include two tools around a bill calendar and a monthly budget. 

	So getting now the last four modules are dealing with debts, understanding credit reports and scores, choosing financial products and services, and then consumer protection. And so the unique tools in here is the modified debt worksheet and also a tool on dealing with debt collectors. 

	And then Module 9 we have a tool for identifying financial abuse and exploitation. 

	So I mentioned the Able accounts. So this is another one of the ones I wanted to highlight. So for many people with disabilities who are receiving public benefits, saving might not seem like an option that's available to them. This is usually because when people receive public benefits, some benefit programs have asset limits. Those asset limits cap the amount of savings and other resources that somebody can have and still maintain eligibility for public benefits.

	So when a program has asset limits, savings might impact the person's eligibility for that type of assistance. So there are actually saving options though that do not count against these asset limits, and it's so important that we help them identify these because saving is so important to make advancements within financial security.

	So focus on people with disabilities discussed four potential ways that people with disabilities can save while they receive public benefits like SSI or Medicaid or any other benefits. 

	Each of these ways to save can be complicated though. So the goal is to flag them so that way a person knows where to start and when to do additional research. 

	So again, four of the ways that they are identified right here is around the Able Accounts, Individual Development Accounts (IDA) and (PASS) accounts, and then special needs trust and pooled trust as well. So again this section is going to give a little bit more context for that to help you when working with this population.

	So I mentioned the Able Accounts. The able accounts if you're not familiar with them they're an important new resource for people with disabilities. Actually they were created with the passage of Stephen Beck Junior Achieving a Better Life Experience Act of 2014. But it's helping individuals with disabilities to save. 

	So in general, people with disabilities may be limited on how much they can save in assets without it affecting their SSI or Medicaid. So these able accounts though are going to allow certain people with disabilities to save much more and still keep their vital benefits -- keeping them much more independence and financial empowerment.

	So the able account programs are established and maintained by individual states. And an eligible person can actually open an account in their own state if the program exists, or even in another state with another state's program that accepts out of state residents. And so that gives us the ability to make choices around what is the best account for us. 
	
	So the first part of this tool around setting up an Able account is going to help us understand what's an Able account and, if they want to open one, what are the things they want to consider if they decide between their options? 

	So this first part of the tool is going to give us instructions in two steps for taking when exploring the possibility of setting up an Able account. So first we want to help the person to respond to four key questions to determine if an able account is an option for them. You can see the questions there on the screen.

	So do you meet the eligibility requirements? Do your goals match the qualified disability expenses allowed to be able to be paid for using an Able account? Do you have the minimum contribution required to open it up? And do you plan to continue to make contributions to the Able account once it's opened?

	So if you meet the eligibility requirements and you want to open one up, so the next piece would be if a person decides they want to open an able account, we work with them to fill out the second part of the tool and this is going to help them compare two able accounts programs side by side. 

	So here is the next piece. So it's that comparison piece. You know, we compare two different programs. So maybe one in our state and maybe one in a couple different states. And it's going to help us look through, you know, what are the most important things to me? So, you know, where is the program at? Who is the administrator? Are there any contributions to contributing to a particular account? Are there any other fees? Things like that.

	So again, helping us decide as with a lot of these Your Money Your Goals tools we're really trying to help the individual just think through this and decide for themselves which one is the best one for me. And then at that point I can open up that account.

	All right. The next tool I want to highlight was the using the SSI estimator. This tool is fantastic. Because I mean for one when I first was introduced to this, it helped break through some of the misunderstandings that I had around the SSI and income. So this tool is designed to help a person with disabilities understand how earnings from work affect their SSI benefits. 

	It's so important because many people with disabilities receive SSI. And some people who receive SSI may think that they cannot work at all or don't understand exactly how working will change their monthly benefits. 

	So using the SSI estimator is so important because it can help some people think that may be getting - because some people may think that getting a job, getting a paid job, will stop their SSI check all together. And that might not be necessarily true. 

	And so it helps us walk through the steps of like is it worth it to me? You know, how much will my SSI be affected by the working income? And then decide like do I want to work.  So I think it's really powerful as they you know, an individual might want to pursue working employment. 

	So you can see here's the tool. It's in three parts. You've got, you know, first it's trying to estimate to find out how much is going to be taken from your SSI payment. And then it's going to help us calculate the new SSI amount and then calculate your total income. 

	So you use these three pieces together and then you'll have a better idea of well, if I start working and I receive this amount from my pay, hair is how much my SSI payments are going to be reduced. And so then the total amount together, here's how much it is. Is it more than what I was receiving beforehand? If so, how much more? And that's going to help us understand.

	And so generally for the most part it's going to be more. They're going to be receiving more. So you can see from this example that's in this sheet. So if somebody was starting to work and their receiving $585 from working income, right off the bat you cut $85 right off the top of it. So now we're calculating the income affected by that $500 line instead of 585. And then you divide it by two. And that's the amount that's going to be taken from your SSI payment. So that's $250. 

	So if you were originally receiving $735 from your SSI every month, you subtract the $250. Now you're at 485 for your new SSI payments. So now you add the new SSI payment of $485 to your income of 585 and now you have a total of $1,070.  

	So again if you're originally receiving $735 per month from SSI before working income, after now working to the point where you're receiving 585, your new total income source from your SSI and you're working income is now going to be higher by more than $300. 

	So this is a great way to just work through it -- healthy individual see. And it's a calculator so if you go on to the CFPB's Website, you can access the electronic version of this tool and then just using that tool type in these numbers and it does the math for you. Because again, let's leave the doing the math to people who really enjoy it. I love when things get automated for me, make sure that I'm not making any errors -- especially when I'm trying to help somebody guide through such an important decision like should I start working again. 

	So again, hopefully this is a neat tool for you. I think it is very interesting the way that it helps us really just illustrate what is the change going to be?-- so that way we have no misconceptions about the change in my payments. 

	So now Module 9 is all about highlighting the importance of identifying and addressing financial abuse, fraud, and exploitation. So just like with the elder abuse that we talked about with the Native communities, obviously it's a huge issue as well here within the disability community. So basically while many people are at risk of having their identity stolen in general, people with disabilities may face even higher risk of identity theft, financial abuse, and financial exploitation.

	So that's why it is so very important that we understand the best ways to approach, you know, identifying and seeking assistance when needed.  So in this section here these are the following circumstances or conditions that may make a person more at risk for financial exploitation. Again, now you can see why the disability community is so much higher risk.

	Because they have the regular income and accumulated assets. They're trusting and polite. They're lonely and socially isolated. Being reluctant to report exploitation by a family member, caregiver, or someone they depend on. Fear of rejection or retaliation by the exploiter.  Being unfamiliar with managing financial matters.  So these different situations, these can make a person more at risk for financial exploitation.

	So first we need to start off with again identifying the financial abuse and exploitation. So you know, again they might be reluctant. These individuals might be reluctant to say anything about what's happening to them out of either embarrassment or shame or maybe even just fear of reprisal by their caregivers. 

	So that level of dependency on the perpetrator, you know, might make this much more difficult. So family members or even close friends may even be unaware of the situation regarding financial exploitation. Or they may even be the individuals committing the financial exploitation or abuse themselves. So that's why it's so important for us to help with this identification.

	So here is the tool. So you can see it here on your screen. This tool can provide the instructions as well as you know, many types of situations that a person experiencing financial abuse and exploitation may encounter.

	So we can go through this list so you can see if you see some of these situations on the left side of the list and then check off is it suspected, is it observed, or is it reported. Helping us identify those situations. And because we're going to be able to use that information to help us decide whether or not to get assistance. 

	So the next part is the resources around this because financial exploitation often goes unreported because people do not know which steps to take or even if somebody would like to report it. So just keep in mind you do not need to prove that financial exploitation and/or abuse is actually occurring to report it. It's up to the professionals to take action if you suspect abuse. 

	So again, that's why these tools are so very helpful for individuals. This can be such a difficult thing to report. Okay. So that's the focus on people with disabilities. 

	Now the last focus guide that we want to highlight today is the focus on reentry. So reentry obviously is a huge issue. When there so many individuals that have criminal records, this focus guide is important is obviously apparent.  This population has unique financial challenges that can cause havoc on their access to employment and housing.

	So the purpose of this focus guide is basically to help staff and volunteers that work with these individuals that have criminal records address some of the common financial issues and challenges that they may face. And it has a number of those unique and modified tools that can help us, you know, and to use in combination with Your Money Your Goals toolkit to help these individuals take control of their financial lives.

	So it's going to help frontline staff to have a conversation about money, you know, identify financial challenges for successful transition. We want to reduce those recidivism rates. So what can we do to help that individual make an effective transition out of incarceration? So that way we're going to improve those success rates. 

	We're going to create goals, identifying steps to achieve the. And a big piece is obtaining the documents related to identification to help ease that transition process. So that can be a huge stumbling block for individuals. 

	So we're going to identify and prioritize their debts, which in these cases these modified tools have those criminal justice system debt included in there. So we can make those conversations and get much more tailored to them, much more real to them.
	
	We're going to help them access and review their credit reports and also understand their rights during the criminal background screening process during employment application process because we want our clients -- as with all of this -- we want our clients to understand their options but also understand their rights and their protections that are afforded to them to make sure they're not getting taken advantage of.

	So the focus on reentry content you can see there we've got the getting started section here. Just helping the service provider have an effective conversation, understand the context and, you know, understand their resources.

	But then now we get around to the tools for those individuals to help with the individual. So they're all around managing money, dealing with debts, a big chunk on understanding credit reports and scores. And then getting into background screening reports, using and protecting their money -- so consumer protection stuff -- and then again additional resources that might help them again with that successful transition.

	So different ways you can use the focus on reentry guide -- anytime so either anytime while someone's awaiting trial or sentencing, they maybe in jail or in prison, serving a sentence, or even following their release. All of this makes sense. 

	You know, of course your expertise as a service provider can help you identify those opportunities and even just like what conversations should be held. If you're working with someone before they've been released, what things can we do to prepare them for release? And so that way as soon as they're out we already have a lot of stuff put together. And so they're again just going to be that much better off. They're going to be just ready to go right out the bat. And so again, very helpful for them.

	So again, using these tools along with the Your Money Your Goals toolkit it's going to help us giving you that narrative information for the service provider to help them have affective conversations, but also address those special issues faced by the individuals in the criminal justice system. 

	So and just like those other resources, you can be using them and one on one situations or small group settings. All of this is affective. Again just you know, think through what do you think would be the best communication for you. 

	So when you get started, they've got a couple different resources here they help us get started with this one. It's going to help us have those financial conversations in these situations. They have three approaches to help you with getting started. 

	So having the money conversation. Obviously, I have a tool around reflecting around the values, around money, current financial situation. They also get into the goal setting. So setting a specific smart goal is going to help us plan for them. And then lastly getting documentation of identity help us with that.

	So this was that starting the money conversation my money picture. As you know, for those of you who have been joining us for the last couple weeks here, you've seen a couple of different assessment tools we can use with clients. So there's the Your Money Your Goals toolkit. And even next week I'll show you a couple of them. There's assessment tools in all the booklets as well.

	But here's the one specifically around the reentry population -- the My Money Picture Worksheet. So this is going to help identify those unique challenges for these individuals -- you know, help them assess their financial goals and challenges, identify what tools within Your Money Your Goals tool kit or the focus on reentry that we're going to want to cover with them. So again, just a nice questionnaire. Helps us get started with his conversation.      

	So and then here's the modified tool around setting goals. So it's helping these individuals set smart goals and then listing through some steps that they can use to achieve them. And these goals can be either short term, they can be long term. Again, it's just a really good and effective nice action plan around reaching our goals.

	And so that's the nice thing about all these. It's something you see as a common theme in Your Money Your Goals is that we're trying to break up a lot of these big things into much smaller steps because then we can start seeing those individuals can start seeing those smaller successes and that can empower them and encourage them to keep working through again some more difficult steps and achieve something that they may be thought was so big and so lofty of a goal. But it becomes once you break it down into smaller steps it can become reality. It just takes hard work and it just takes sticking to it. And that's why breaking it up, that encouragement is so important.

	So another tool that's in here, one that identifies around because a big part of this is around helping these individuals get the documentation that they need in order to successfully you know, get employment or housing. So this document is an identification checklist -- a nice checklist to make sure that I have everything I need so, you know. And what are the barriers that not having that documentation could pose?

	So do I have a copy of my birth certificate? Do I have a state picture identification, driver's license? Do I have my Social Security card? Have I looked through my rap sheet, my criminal record? 

	So again looking through these identifications and getting this stuff lined up as much as I can. Especially this is great for when you're working with populations that are actually, you know, before they've been released what documentation you can get together ahead of time that way as soon as they are released you have the stuff.

	Or, you know, maybe they have to actually wait to submit the documentation until right after they've been released but at least if you've already filled out some of the documentation it can make the process a little bit smoother for them, to make it more likely we're going to get the stuff in a timely matter. 

	So this is a modified debt worksheet again working with this population. Again I like that they have these modified tools in the sections that are really helpful to make sure that this individual understands not just all they have -- because taking inventory huge when it comes to debt, so very important. But also there's another big piece of this is it's helping us understand, and that's the unique piece of this tool is helping them understand what could happen if you do not pay off this debt.

	And you see like you can see there on the screen there is you know, whether it could potentially lead to re-incarceration, repossession of something you own, loss of housing and driver's license, garnishments, loss of services or even lawsuits. 

	So understanding all of these the implications of not paying a bill can help us then prioritize debts or at least just say all right, if I only have enough money for seven to ten bills, let's pay those seven first and then maybe I can still be proactive and reach out to my creditors for the other ones and create a plan. So at least I make sure that the most important ones are paid first. 
	
	So now in this section they also have these closer look handouts. Again, these are not something that not something that actually has like action steps in it like a checklist or something you fill in information or numbers or anything like that to calculate.

	This actually is just background information -- information about their background screening reports. So it's going to help them understand their rights with respect to the background screening reports because again we want to educate our clients to make sure that they understand there right so they're not being taken advantage of. And if they are taken advantage of, they know that that's the case so we can report those individuals to the particular people who should be getting assistance.

	So whether maybe that's the CFPB they need to be reported to, you know, submit a complaint to them. Again, just making sure we understand our rights. So that way you know, the potential employers are not doing anything that's inappropriate. 

	So the background screening report checklist this helping us then review our background screen report to make sure it's absolutely accurate. This is just, you know, a similar process to our credit reports. We want to pull our credit reports. We want to make sure it's absolutely accurate because we're so highly judged by it anytime we're in a lending situation or even just those other situations like, you know, rent and getting a house or you know, even with employment. 

	Background screening reports, same thing, same concept is that our clients are judged by this so heavily that we want to make sure it's accurate. That's huge. So going through, let's review it to make sure it's accurate so we have that information that's using this tool to help us access that background report and then correct any errors before we start, you know, putting it out there as we start searching for maybe employment if it comes up. 

	So another closer look handout here is about obtaining your criminal record. Same concepts -- we want to make sure there is no mistakes. Paperwork is paperwork. I mean, you know, we all make mistakes on random documents from time to time. 

	So we want to make sure that the individuals we work with can identify and make sure there's no errors on our paperwork, you know -- especially their criminal record there. So they have to make sure it's accurate. So here is how we pull it and here you know, and how do we read it to make sure it's accurate so that way we can, you know, dispute any errors. 

	So and then the next step with this is how do I dispute an error on my criminal record. That's this next handout is. Again, giving them that information so they can walk through this process to pull, you know, again pull their criminal record and then dispute any of those errors. 

	Go through the process -- you know, do I contact the agency or agencies that submitted the information to the FBI in the first place? And then I can maybe with option two there, sending a written challenge request to the FBI's criminal justice investigation. So again just submitting the right information and doing it effectively.          

	Okay. So I went through a lot of information as usual. You know, these are really dense presentations. I want to make sure that everyone has a good feeling of what's all in there, how the tools are set up, and especially how you can use them and how important it is that we can you know, that you do what you do. 
	
	This information that you're providing to the people you work with is so vitally important. And so hopefully these resources, I hope you've identified a couple tools they can help you to just improve those conversations you're already having currently to just make it faster and easier for you to do that. Because I know you have a lot else on your plate. So whatever we can do to help you with that is great.

	So I hope these tools are really helpful to you. At this point, I would like to open it up for questions and we'll get responding to them. 

Heather Brown:	Thank you so much, Scott. That was an excellent presentation. And again you packed a lot of great information in one session. And that could have easily been three different sessions. So we are appreciative when we can get a really streamlined picture of everything that's happening. 

	Operator, would you mind giving instructions for the question and answer period, please?

Coordinator:         Thank you. If you would like to ask a question, please press Star 1 on your touch tone phone. You will be prompted to record your name prior to asking your question. Please unmute your phone and record your name clearly when prompted. 

	Again to ask a question, please press Star 1. To withdraw your request, press Star 2. One moment for the first question. 

Heather Brown:	And while she's queuing up for the questions, I just wanted to call your attention to the fact that we actually had done a full session on Financial Success After Prison. And we just briefly touched on the Your Money Your Goals. But if you want to take a deeper dive into some of the issues around Financial Success After Prison, you're welcome to go back and watch that recording of the presentation, the Webinar. And that was dated March 14th. 

	And again if you go to our Website -- consumerfinance.gov -- click on practitioner resources and then adult financial education Webinar training, you will get to the list of all of the old -- not old but previous because some of them are fairly recent actually -- of previous Webinars. 

	And we also had some others that I think you'll find useful as well. So look forward to you checking in on some of those.

	Okay. Operator…

Scott Bennett:	Well looks like we've got two questions in there right now…

Heather Brown:	Okay. 

Scott Bennett:	…that were typed in. So before we check with the Operator to see if we've got any audio, the questions so far. We've got one that says can you use the SSI calculator when trying to assist the elderly? The elderly may still want or need to work and earn an additional income but not lose their social security income in the process or other benefits. 

	Yes, for sure. I mean the SSI estimator, it's anyone who's receiving SSI payments. That calculator is for them. It's perfect for that. 

	And yes, you can help them use that to identify what would happen if I started working? What would be the effect on my SSI payments? And so is it worth it to me? What can I then plan on? So for sure definitely go ahead and use that with anybody who receives SSI payments. 

	The other question was do you have any information that would help those individuals that are undocumented. I don't have any tools specifically working with those populations. Lots of tools can be used with again any population. So again, we don't have like a focus guide specifically for undocumented population, no.

Heather Brown:	Okay, thank you Scott. Operator, did we get any questions?

Coordinator:	At this time, I show no questions over the phone.

Heather Brown:	Okay. Well, if there's no questions over the phone and I think Scott you covered the questions that were sent to you directly. All of them, correct?    

Scott Bennett:	Yes. Those were the only ones I saw.   

Heather Brown:	Okay. Well if you're okay with it I think we can go ahead and wrap the session up. Operator, will you give the conclusion instructions?

Coordinator:	Thank you. At this time the conference has concluded. You may disconnect at this time. Thank you for participating in today's conference call.


END
NWX-CFPB HQ (US)
Moderator: Heather Brown 
04-16-19/1:00 pm CT
Confirmation # 8933375 
Page 1