By Dave Gatton
October 3, 2011

October is DollarWise Month for cities across the country as they gear up to promote the importance of financial education and sponsor financial planning events.

In 31 metro areas, ranging from Los Angeles, Oakland, Philadelphia, Columbus and South Florida, cities are supporting Financial Planning Days during October with their local chapters of the Financial Planning Association and the Certified Financial Planning Board. Along with the Foundation for Financial Planning and The U.S. Conference of Mayors, the four organizations comprise the Financial Planning Day Consortium that encourages mayors and local FPA chapters to hold events where certified financial planners provide one-on-one, pro bono, no'strings-attached financial advice to the general public. The effort is part of the Conference of Mayors DollarWise Financial Education Campaign.

As part of its October Dollar Month, other mayors from across the country will be holding events to promote and highlight the importance of financial education. In a city hall ceremony, Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory will feature summer youth job recipients who pursued financial education during their 2011 summer job experience. In Hartford, Mayor Pedro Segarra will launch a comprehensive financial education program for parents and students at the Burr Elementary School in partnership with the DollarWise Campaign and the Hartford United Way. DollarWise founding sponsor, Bank of America, is supporting both initiatives through the DollarWise Innovation grants.

During October, other mayors are encouraged to visit schools to promote financial education, highlight non-profit organizations that deliver financial education classes, encourage the “unbanked” to become banked, and promote personal savings for family “rainy day” funds.

In a survey released September 27, the Financial Planning Day Consortium found that one in three Americans would only be able to pay their mortgage or rent payment for one month or less, if they lost their job. Of those making $35,000 or less annually, almost a quarter would be unable to make any mortgage or rent payment. Prepared by KRC Research, the survey found that 72 percent of respondents spend time at least once a month or more on financial planning-related activities.

For more information on how your city can participate in DollarWise Month, contact Javier Arvelo at jarvelo@usmayors.org