Many low-income working families are unaware that they can receive up to $4,140 in tax credits under the IRS' Earned Income Tax Credit program. Others file with commercial tax preparation services that charge not only a fee for the tax preparation and electronic filing but also high interest on...

Government actions, combined with oversight and standardization from industry organizations, benefit consumers by enabling them to more easily identify agencies that work in their best interest and are certified to provide them with quality financial education.

Access to mainstream financial services is on the horizon for unbanked and underbanked consumers in Houston through Get Checking(TM), a national initiative sponsored by eFunds Corp. and the University of Wisconsin Extension.

ACCION Texas is the largest microlender in the United States. With an active loan portfolio of $6 million, the nonprofit is reaching small businesses throughout the 262,000 square miles of Texas. In 2001, ACCION introduced the Out-of-Area Network to help connect with small businesses throughout...

The latest buzz in the Dallas Fed's Community Affairs Department is the release of a revised and expanded edition of the Bank's hallmark personal finance education resource, Building Wealth.

In August 2005, a joint ruling by the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency made several changes to the rules implementing the Community Reinvestment Act.

Numerous programs, partnerships and other efforts--led by public, private and nonprofit organizations--are under way to reduce the number of delinquencies and foreclosures.

Federal Reserve Governors Susan Bies and Ben Bernanke recently visited with the Community Development Corporation of Brownsville and toured the Cameron Park colonia to learn more about affordable housing development in Texas colonias. They also met with a small business owner who received a loan...

In 1997 Foundation Communities in Austin, Texas, in partnership with Compass Bank, began offering Individual Development Accounts (IDAs) to residents of its affordable, multifamily housing developments. Today, the program has 137 IDA account holders, and participant savings and matched funds...

Louisiana legislators recently approved $2 million in funding for a statewide individual development account program aimed at getting low-income hurricane victims back on their feet.