Campaign For Every Kid’s Future Newsletter – October 2023
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A Very Baby Bonds Day in Massachusetts 👶
Baby Bonds took center stage 🎤 in the Massachusetts legislature on October 24, as both the Joint Committee on Financial Services and Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight held hearings on legislation to create a statewide Baby Bonds program. The organizations providing testimony at the hearings—which ranged from those focused on child welfare, asset/wealth building (including Prosperity Now Community Champion, Midas Collaborative), social services, financial empowerment and banking—showed the breadth of support for Baby Bonds in Massachusetts.
Shira Markoff, Sr. Policy Fellow, and Lauren Bealore, Associate Director for State and Local Policy (pictured below) both represented and expressed Prosperity Now’s strong support for the legislation. 🎉
We Want to Know About Your CSA Program📋
Each year, Prosperity Now conducts a Children’s Savings Account (CSA) program survey to collect data from practitioners to create the annual State of the Field Report and update the CSA directory. The report provides insights on developments and trends across the field including funding sources, enrollment requirements, and types of incentives. The information compiled from the survey also helps to further connect the field, raise awareness about CSAs, and support local and state advocacy and fundraising efforts.
If your organization currently operates or is developing a CSA program, please help us gather the latest information by completing the 2023 CSA survey by Friday, November 3, 2023.
Baby Bonds Are in Style According to New Poll
A national YouGov survey conducted on behalf of the ACLU in December 2022, but recently released, shows strong widespread backing for Baby Bonds. The poll found that 61% of respondents support Baby Bonds if they would be used for home purchases, buying a business or higher education. Support was highest among Black (73% strongly or somewhat support) and Latine respondents (64% strongly or somewhat support), but a majority of White respondents (54%) also strongly or somewhat supported the idea. Unsurprisingly, Democrats had a more favorable view of Baby Bonds with 74% strongly or somewhat supporting, though 42% of Republicans also expressed support. Overall, the results demonstrate the potential to leverage a wide range of backers for this policy.
In the News
Want All Babies to Have a Fair Start in Life? Give Them Baby Bonds | Smerconish.com
In this op-ed appearing on smerconish.com, Prosperity Now Senior Policy Fellow, Shira Markoff, writes about why we need Baby Bonds and encourages states to act now to create Baby Bonds programs that can “support children in starting to build financial stability and wealth while also generating momentum toward a federal program.”
Treasurer Defends College Kids to St. Louis School Board | Riverfront Times
St. Louis Public Schools (SLPS) Superintendent, Keisha Scarlett, announced she would suspend SLPS’s partnership with the College Kids CSA program, following an investigation criticizing the percentage of students with family contributions in their accounts and other aspects of the program. SLPS provides the names and contact information for students who enable automatic enrollment in the program. City Treasurer Adam Layne, whose office runs the program, has given responses to the criticism and has provided extensive information about the program’s impact. Layne is asking Superintendent Scarlett to rescind her decision and restore the partnership.
New Mexico Must Continue Investing in Families | The Deming Headlight
Following historic investments into childcare, pre-K, and early childhood development, this opinion piece makes the case for continued investments in New Mexico children and families. James Jimenez of the NMVC Action Fund and Amber Wallin of NM Voices for Children highlight opportunities for Baby Bonds, paid family and medical leave for all workers, supporting a career ladder for early childhood professionals and more.
In this article, experts highlight the success of San Francisco’s Kindergarten to College (K2C) CSA program. More than 600 students from San Francisco will start college with financial assistance from the program since it began in 2011. Its success helped encourage California to launch CalKIDS, the nation’s largest CSA program, in 2022.
Resources & Publications
How Children’s Savings Account Programs Can Support Black and Latine Students: Case Studies | Abt Associates and Prosperity Now | October 2023
This newly published report is based on research conducted by Abt Associates and Prosperity Now in 2020-21 with four CSA programs, Boston Saves, Oakland Promise, Lansing SAVE and KC Scholars. The report explores what the programs are doing to address challenges faced by Black and Latine students in engaging with CSA programs and ultimately accessing and completing postsecondary education.
American Dream: An Introduction to Baby Bonds, a Birthright to Economic Security | The Institute on Race, Power and Political Economy (IRPPE) at the New School | October 2023
Our partners at IRPPE have launched a new series of Baby Bonds blogs and a new website on the program. Read the introduction to the series and find other Baby Bonds resources from IRPPE here.
Baby Bonds: A Path Toward Prosperity for Future Generations | ACLU | October 2023
Baby Bonds Would Reduce Racial Wealth Inequities. Here’s What Policymakers Need to Know. | Urban Institute | October 2023
Baby Bonds: Leveraging Systemic Change Through Philanthropy, Government and Community Partnerships (webinar recording) | Asset Funders Network | October 2023
