Multilingual Financial Literacy Act

Finance and Financial Sector

senate

house

president

Introduced on May 2, 2024 by Laphonza Romanique Butler

Legislation Details

Establishes the “Multilingual Financial Literacy Act.”
Requires the Financial Literacy and Education Commission to conduct a study on the impact of language barriers on financial health, focusing on access to financial literacy education, credit score outcomes, cost of credit, and homebuying for groups with limited English proficiency.
Mandates consultation with each agency in the Commission’s membership for the study.
Requires a report within 180 days of enactment, detailing findings and analyzing the need for language accessibility in the financial services industry.
Directs the Commission’s website and toll-free telephone number to be available in at least 8 of the most commonly spoken languages in the United States, as determined by the Census Bureau.
Specifies that the website should include information on federal agencies providing financial literacy resources in languages other than English and guidance on finding federal resources in various languages.
The Department of the Treasury is tasked with providing necessary translation services for compliance.
Sets an effective date for these amendments as 1 year after the Act’s enactment.
Within 1 year of enactment, the Commission must submit a report with legislative and regulatory recommendations to address financial inclusion barriers due to language barriers, the role of emerging technology, a summary of actions taken to prepare for these amendments, and an estimate of implementation costs.
Amends the annual report requirements of the Financial Literacy and Education Improvement Act to include summaries of efforts to increase financial literacy, analyses of financial literacy needs and limited access to credit across different groups, explanations of how financial literacy gaps contribute to the wealth gap, and proposals for addressing these issues.

Last updated 10/7/2024