Bill will make financial education more available to newly-naturalized American citizens

Washington, D.C. – Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson today introduced the Naturalized Citizens Assistance Act, a bill that will amend the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 by adding newly-naturalized citizens to the list of participants eligible for financial education programs offered under the law.  The bill will be referred to the House Committee on Financial Services and the House Committee on Homeland Security.

“Approximately 630,000 people become legally naturalized American citizens each year,” Congresswoman Johnson said.  “This bill will help these recently-naturalized Americans become financially literate by expanding their opportunities to access comprehensive financial education.”

A financial literacy education program under the Naturalized Citizens Assistance Act would include instruction on banking, retirement savings, credit, insurance, income taxes, long-term financial planning, predatory lending, identity theft and other financial abuse schemes.  Education programs will be open to people who have been naturalized citizens for a year or less.

April is National Financial Literacy Month.  Earlier this month, Congresswoman Johnson was named the 2009 Federal Legislator of the Year by Jump$tart, a national organization that works to improve the personal financial literacy of students in kindergarten through college.

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U.S. Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson is the highest-ranking Texan on the House Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure and a senior member of the Science Committee. She represents the 30th Congressional District of Texas, which, includes Downtown Dallas, Fair Park, Oak Lawn, Old East Dallas, Pleasant Grove, & South Oak Cliff; all of Balch Springs, DeSoto, Hutchins, Lancaster & Wilmer and parts of Cedar Hill, Duncanville, Ferris, Glenn Heights and Ovilla.