Washington, DC -Yesterday, Wednesday, April 5, 2006, Congressman Rubén Hinojosa (TX-15) was awarded the Federal Legislator Award, from the Jump$tart Coalition® for Personal Financial Literacy for outstanding leadership in personal finance education among members of Congress.  The award recognizes those who have championed personal financial literacy for young people. One winner is selected from the House and one from the Senate.

"It is truly an honor for me to be recognized by Jump$tart for my work to
bring attention financial literacy rates," said Hinojosa.  "So many efforts
have been made to increase people's knowledge about their personal finances,
but much more clearly needs to be done.  We need to start educating our
children early on about what it means to save, to have a credit card, or how
to obtain a loan.  But, we also must educate adults about retirement
planning, homeownership, and the ramifications of filing for bankruptcy.  It
may be daunting, but controlling finances is something that we can all start
today."

Last February, Congressman Hinojosa joined Congresswoman Biggert (IL-13) to
found the House Financial and Economic Literacy Caucus; they currently serve
as the Caucus' co-chairs.  The Caucus seeks to address these issues head on
by increasing public awareness of poor financial literacy rates and will
work to improve those rates. The Caucus has provided a forum for members of
Congress to promote policies that advance financial literacy and economic
education.

"Every day, consumers deal with money - from balancing a checking account;
to shopping for a mortgage or auto loan, researching ways to pay for a
college education, or saving money for retirement," said Hinojosa.
"Unfortunately, so many consumers really don't understand their finances.
We're diligently working in Congress to change that - so that one day
'financial literacy' is the rule, and not the exception."  

The Federal Legislator Award winners were nominated by Coalition partners
nationwide and chosen by a special committee.  Judging criteria included
sponsoring and/or passing legislation to provide funding for financial
literacy programs for K-12 schools; resolutions advocating youth personal
finance; and public statements regarding the importance of youth financial
literacy.

The Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy is a not-for-profit
organization that seeks to improve the personal financial literacy of young
adults.

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REMARKS OF THE HONORABLE RUBEN HINOJOSA
JUMP$TART COALITION 2006 AWARDS DINNER
CELEBRATING ADVANCEMENTS IN PERSONAL FINANCIAL LITERACY
FINANCIAL LITERACY FEDERAL LEGISLATOR AWARD
APRIL 5, 2006

I am sincerely honored and humbled to be here with you all this evening, and
to be recognized for my efforts on behalf of my constituents and all
Americans.  Education is a true passion in my life, and I can only hope that
my efforts to improve financial literacy make a contribution in people's
lives. 

April is going to be a very important and busy month for me and for many
Members of Congress who are committed to improving financial literacy in the
United States. It certainly was for me last year.  It was the first time we
held a Financial Literacy Day Fair on the House side, and I have to confess
that it was quite a daunting task.  However, with the assistance of Laura
Levine and David Casserly of Jump$tart, Edwin Bodensiek from Junior
Achievement, Robert Duvall and his counsel Frank Vlossak, and the incredible
luncheon provided by HSBC, we pulled it off. 

I am confident that with their help this year's event will be just as
successful.  Last year, I think we were all amazed by the number of vendors
that agreed to participate - so many in fact, we had to start a waiting
list.  The level of participation was overwhelming as well.  Hundreds of
people attended last year's fair - and I'm sure the same will be true this
April 25th.  I know that I'll be looking forward to it. 

We already have commitments from 40 vendors who will again share their
financial literacy products and services.

I want to take this opportunity to thank all of you in this room who are
collaborating with us on this year's fair.  Each year, we need to expand and
enhance our efforts to improve financial literacy rates to individuals
across the United States during all stages of life.  This is extremely
important and the Fair is one part of that equation.

Like many of you, I look forward to the day when the term "financial
literacy" is a part of everyday language.  Although we have a long way to go
to attain that goal, I believe that it can be accomplished.

It is my hope that I can serve as an intermediary between all of you here
tonight and the Caucus to join in actions that will further educate
Americans about financial and economic topics ranging from the importance of
saving to reducing debt and reaching the dream of  homeownership.

Financial literacy means empowerment - power to manage money, credit, and
debt and become responsible workers, heads of households, investors,
entrepreneurs, and leaders.
It means banking the unbanked and bringing them into the mainstream
financial system to protect them from abusive, predatory, or deceptive
credit offers and financial products.

Numerous programs exist to improve financial literacy.  Recently, I reviewed
Jump$tart's website and found over 500 financial literacy programs. 

While this means that many groups and individuals are working towards the
goal of improving financial literacy rates, it also means that more
coordination and collaboration among the programs and the groups are needed.

Yesterday, the Financial Literacy Economic Commission released its National
Strategy for Financial Literacy. 

They were behind schedule, but the report is finally out and contains some
good ideas, especially Public Service Announcements and a multi-media
campaign. Although it is a good start, much remains to be done. Other
actions need to be taken and different venues need to be employed to achieve
our goal.  I remain committed to convincing our Appropriators that they
should provide $3.5 million for the multi-media campaign. 

With our savings rate currently at a negative 0.2 percent, I believe that
$3.5 million is a paltry sum to appropriate to help improve the savings rate
in the U.S.    The funds are also needed to afford the multi-media campaign
the ability to educate our constituents who remain subject to predatory
lenders, potential identity theft from increasing data breaches, and more. 

I am going to encourage the Financial Services Committee to hold a hearing
on the National Strategy on Financial Literacy as required by Title V of the
FACT Act.  This will be a crucial step in determining exactly what needs to
be done on a legislative front to increase people's financial awareness.

I look forward to continuing to collaborate with all of you on any and all efforts that will increase financial literacy rates. It is never too late to take control of your personal finances - and it's something that all of us in the United States can start today! 

Again, thank you for honoring me with this award.