Bill Text: IL SR0243 | 2013-2014 | 98th General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Creates the Financial Literacy Task Force.

Sponsorship: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-1)

Status: (Failed) 2015-01-13 - Session Sine Die [SR0243 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2013-SR0243-Amended.html

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AMENDMENT TO SENATE RESOLUTION 243
AMENDMENT NO. ___. Amend Senate Resolution 243 by replacing
everything after the heading with the following:
"WHEREAS, This State's students lack the financial
literacy necessary to manage finances in adulthood; and
WHEREAS, According to the 2011 Consumer Financial Literacy
Survey Final Report of the National Foundation for Credit
Counseling, 41% of adults in the United States, or more than
77,000,000 adults living in the United States, gave themselves
a grade of C, D, or F on their knowledge of personal finance;
and
WHEREAS, According to the National Bankruptcy Research
Center, the number of personal bankruptcy filings reached
1,500,000 in 2010, the highest number since 2005, and, in 2011,
the percentage of total consumer filings increased from 2010;

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and
WHEREAS, The 2011 Retirement Confidence Survey conducted
by the Employee Benefit Research Institute found that only 13%
of workers were "very confident" about having enough money for
a comfortable retirement, a sharp decline in worker confidence
from the 27% of workers who were "very confident" in 2007; and
WHEREAS, According to a 2011 "Flow of Funds" report by the
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, household
debt stood at $13,200,000,000,000 at the end of the third
quarter of 2010; and
WHEREAS, According to the 2011 Consumer Financial Literacy
Survey Final Report of the National Foundation for Credit
Counseling, 28%, or nearly 64,000,000 adults, admit to not
paying all of their bills on time; and
WHEREAS, According to the 2011 Consumer Financial Literacy
Survey Final Report of the National Foundation for Credit
Counseling, only 43% of adults keep close track of their
spending, and more than 128,400,000 adults do not know how much
they spend on food, housing, and entertainment and do not
monitor their overall spending; and
WHEREAS, According to the 2011 Consumer Financial Literacy

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Survey Final Report of the National Foundation for Credit
Counseling, one in 3 adults in the United States, or more than
75,600,000 individuals, report that they have no savings, and
only 22% of adults in the United States are now saving more
than they did a year ago because of the current economic
climate; and
WHEREAS, According to the Gallup-Operation HOPE Financial
Literacy Index, while 69% of American students strongly believe
that the best time to save money is now, only 57% believe that
their parents are saving money for the future; and
WHEREAS, According to the University of Wisconsin, 89% of
teachers in grades kindergarten through 12 believe that either
financial literacy courses or passing a financial literacy
competency test should be a requirement for high school
graduation, but only 20% of teachers rate themselves as "very
competent" to teach financial literacy; and
WHEREAS, Expanding access to the mainstream financial
system will provide individuals with less expensive and more
secure options for managing finances and building wealth; and
WHEREAS, Quality personal financial education is essential
to ensure that individuals are prepared to manage money,
credit, and debt and to become responsible workers, heads of

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households, investors, entrepreneurs, business leaders, and
citizens; and
WHEREAS, Increased financial literacy empowers individuals
to make wise financial decisions and reduces the confusion
caused by an increasingly complex economy; and
WHEREAS, A greater understanding of and familiarity with
financial markets and institutions will lead to increased
economic activity and growth; and
WHEREAS, Significant functions of government are to
provide primary and secondary education to the public and to
otherwise improve the prosperity, health, and general welfare
of the inhabitants of this State; therefore, be it
RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL
ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge the State Board
of Education to encourage school districts to re-evaluate the
role of financial literacy within their educational plans
across all grades; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we urge the State Board of Education to
establish an Internet website for teachers that would serve as
a clearinghouse and coordinated entry point for accessing free
resources about financial literacy programs, as well as

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publications, grants, and materials that promote enhanced
financial literacy and education; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we urge each school district in this State
to consider how financial literacy could be used in a
cross-curriculum format to better prepare this State's school
children for adulthood; and be it further