(1) The
purpose of the financial empowerment office is to grow the financial resilience and
well-being of Coloradans through community-derived goals and strategies,
including but not limited to:
(a) Expanding access to safe and affordable banking;
(b) Increasing access to safe, affordable, low-cost credit offered at costs
that do not exceed the finance charges permitted by Colorado law;
(c) Expanding access to free individual financial counseling and coaching;
(d) Expanding community wealth-building strategies; and
(e) Identifying barriers to financial empowerment and financial stability.
(2) The financial empowerment office may partner with state and federal
agencies, local governments, tribal nations, community organizations, financial
institutions, local service providers, philanthropic organizations, and other
organizations as necessary to achieve the purposes of the office. In furtherance of
achieving the purposes of the office, subject to available appropriations, the office
may develop or promote new or existing:
(a) Methods, programs, and policies to increase access to safe and
affordable financial products;
(b) Tools and resources that advance, increase, and improve Colorado
residents' financial management, including strategies for debt management and
reduction, increasing savings, and creating and retaining assets that promote
personal financial stability;
(c) Community-informed strategies that dismantle systemic barriers to
building ownership and wealth for all, especially low-income communities and
communities of color; and
(d) Tools that promote financial stability such as those that assist with
service navigation, eviction avoidance, or connections to income supports.
(3) The financial empowerment office shall, subject to available
appropriations:
(a) Support the organization of local community efforts to define and lead
tailored financial resilience strategies based on local context, priorities, and
expertise from those serving these communities. Stakeholders may include but are
not limited to representatives of older adults, younger adults, communities of color,
underbanked and unbanked Coloradans, immigrants, Coloradans of low income,
banks, credit unions, local service providers, local government agencies, and
philanthropic organizations.
(b) Align, support, and build ties among the numerous and diverse efforts to
build financial education and well-being in communities across Colorado;
(c) Establish a council comprised of financial institutions, the office of the
state treasurer, local and state officials, tribal nations, philanthropic and
community organizations, and other organizations or persons determined by the
director to assist the director in defining, identifying, creating, expanding, and
increasing access to ownership, financial well-being, and safe and affordable
banking and financial services that help improve the financial stability of unbanked
and underbanked individuals and families and to assist the director in identifying
products and practices that may undermine financial stability. At no point shall the
majority of council members be representative of or have ties to the financial
services industry and every effort shall be made to include representatives of
under-represented communities.
(d) Work with stakeholders to increase access to safe and affordable credit-building loans and financial products;
(e) Work with state authorities and other stakeholders to expand access to
safe and affordable banking products with low fees and easy account access, as
well as safe and affordable credit-building loans offered by financial service
providers licensed in Colorado at costs that do not exceed the finance charges
permitted by Colorado law;
(f) Work with stakeholders to identify products and practices that may
undermine financial stability;
(g) Develop technical assistance to launch or expand financial coaching and
counseling efforts locally;
(h) Track community feedback on consumer financial abuses permitting the
accused business thirty days to respond prior to any public disclosure, and
coordinate with the consumer protection division within the department of law and
the department of regulatory agencies to connect consumers with existing
resources and educate the public on their related consumer rights.
(4) The financial empowerment office has no independent examination or
regulatory authority, but nothing in this part 11 shall be construed to limit the
authorities of the attorney general, the administrator designated in section 5-6-103,
or the department of regulatory agencies.
(5) The department of law shall annually report on the state of affordable
banking access in Colorado, the activities of the office of financial empowerment,
and local partnerships in implementing the objectives of the office as a part of its
presentation to its committee of reference at a hearing held pursuant to section 2-7-203 (2)(a) of the State Measurement for Accountable, Responsive, and
Transparent (SMART) Government Act. The report shall address access to secure,
safe, and affordable financial products, including:
(a) Geographic and racial equity considerations;
(b) An examination of existing financial products regulated by the state of
Colorado and other financial products that are being offered within Colorado;
(c) Recommendations for reforms that would encourage greater access to
secure, safe, and affordable financial products or would provide better protections
to consumers; and
(d) An examination of local financial empowerment work and the impact on
economic security and mobility of residents.