Center for American Progress

: Building Wealth at Tax Time for Low-Income Families
Past Event


Building Wealth at Tax Time for Low-Income Families


12:00 - 1:30 PM EST



Working families need savings to weather emergencies and plan for the future. Congress recognized the importance of helping cash-strapped families save when it enacted the Saver’s Credit in 2001, but the credit has not reached its full potential. Please join the Center for American Progress for a discussion on building wealth for low-income families at tax time. The conversation will focus on two innovative pilots—SaveUSA, a city-driven matched savings demonstration that began in New York; and Refund2Savings, or R2S, a large-scale pilot using behavioral economics to market savings through online tax prep software. Savings policy experts from the Aspen Institute and the New America Foundation will also discuss proposals for reforming the Saver’s Credit.

Featured panelists:

Reid Cramer, Director, Asset Building Program, New America Foundation

Krista Holub, Program Manager, Center for Social Development, Washington University in St. Louis

Mitchell Kent, Director of Legislative Policy and Special Counsel, New York City Department of Consumer Affairs

Lisa Mensah, Director, Initiative on Financial Security, The Aspen Institute

Moderated by:

Joe Valenti, Director of Asset Building, Center for American Progress