Laser Talk: Help People Save with the Financial Security Credit

ENGAGE: According to CFED, 44 percent of American households don’t have enough savings to stay out of poverty for more than three months if they lose their income.

PROBLEM: This means that millions of Americans are just one job loss or one medical crisis away from financial disaster.

INFORM: The Financial Security Credit uses tax time to help people build emergency savings. Low-income taxpayers could choose to deposit all or part of their tax refund into an eligible savings product by simply checking a box on their tax return. And to encourage their participation, after eight months they would get a 50 cent match for every dollar they save, up to $500 per year. A similar pilot program called SaveUSA has shown that this idea works.

CALL TO ACTION: Will you co-sponsor H.R. 2917, the Financial Security Credit Act of 2013, and speak with House Ways and Means leaders about including the Financial Security Credit in upcoming tax legislation?

What Is a Laser Talk?

A laser talk serves as a useful starting point for your advocacy work, whether as a talking points during a town hall meeting or as a primer for face-to-face meetings with candidates and elected officials. Follow up with more information and evidence supporting your points. And of course, adapt a laser talk to reflect your own experiences and why you care about the issue! For more on how to create your own laser talk, see the RESULTS Activist Toolkit: Create and Deliver Your EPIC Laser Talk.