Title
Amending Chapter 2.02 of the Administrative Code by creating the Office of Financial Empowerment.
Body
WHEREAS, many residents in the City of Saint Paul experience profound financial insecurity; and
WHEREAS, 16% of Saint Paul residents experience income poverty where they earn income under the federal poverty threshold; and
WHEREAS, 40% of households in Saint Paul experience liquid asset poverty where they do not have sufficient liquid assets to subsist at the poverty level for at least three months in the absence of income; and
WHEREAS, 22% of Saint Paul residents live in zero or negative financial net worth households; and
WHEREAS, 37% of all Saint Paul households are housing cost-burdened, spending at least 30% of their monthly income on rent or mortgage; and
WHEREAS, Saint Paul is renter-majority household city, and 51% of renters are housing cost-burdened; and
WHEREAS, the City of Saint Paul recognizes these realities are often rooted in historic disinvestment by public and private institutions that must be undone; and
WHEREAS, Mayor Carter has established economic justice as a core pillar of his vision for creating a city that works for everyone; and
WHEREAS, the City of Saint Paul establishes the Office of Financial Empowerment to advance an economy that extends prosperity to all Saint Paul residents; and
WHEREAS, the Office of Financial Empowerment is being created with the following goals: to help Saint Paul residents achieve financial health; to help Saint Paul neighborhoods achieve community wealth; to ensure Saint Paul residents live in stable, accessible, fair, and equitable communities; and to ensure Saint Paul community members are engaged in community and public decision-making; and
WHEREAS, the Office of Financial Empowerment will improve resident financial health and community wealth through integrated financial empowerment programs and policies, including college savings accounts, banking access, financial coun...
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