Financial Literacy Council

July 11, 2007
Telephone Conference

Council Members Present:
Paul Auslander
James DeSantis
Liana Fernandez Fox
Cassandra J. Grayson
Doug Heinlen
Deidre Newton
Obdulio Piedra, Chair
Dulce Suarez-Resnick

Council Members Absent:
Richard George

The second meeting of the Financial Literacy Council was held on July 11, 2007 via telephone conference. The meeting was called to order by Chairman Obdulio Piedra at 10:00 a.m. Roll was called by R. Jai Howard, Staff Director of the Financial Literacy Council.

Welcome and Introductions
Chair Obdulio Piedra opened the meeting by giving his email address our to any non-committee members who wished to ask a question or make a comment during the meeting. He noted that he would acknowledge anyone who sent him an email during the call.

Chairman Piedra then welcomed and introduced the two members of the Financial Literacy Council that were unable to attend the first meeting: Dr. Liana Fernandez Fox and Doug Heinlen. Both Dr. Fox and Mr. Heinlen took a few moments to briefly address the group.

Approval of Minutes
Chair Piedra asked if everyone had received and reviewed the minutes from the June 25, 2007 meeting. He then asked if anyone had any questions or corrections for R. Jai. Liana Fernandez Fox asked for clarification on the meeting schedule, and R. Jai Howard provided correct dates for remaining meetings in 2008. Motion to approve minutes was made by Dulce Suarez-Resnick, and was seconded by Cassandra Grayson. Motion passed.

Recap of June 25, 2007 meeting
Chairman Piedra provided a recap of the first meeting of the Financial Literacy Council, which took place in Tallahassee at the Capitol on Monday, June 25, 2007. He reminded everyone about Government in the Sunshine, and said that all email to and between Council members must go through the Staff Director. He also asked the Staff Director, R. Jai Howard to email the Council members the first presentation that was done at the June 25th meeting: Overview of the Financial Literacy Council’s Charge. The Chair complimented CFO Alex Sink and her staff for all the work and preparations for the first meeting, and he congratulated the Council on the progress that was made.

Follow-up on Information Requested by Council Members
R. Jai Howard mentioned progress of www.MyFloridaMoney.com, commenting that meeting minutes, agendas, and presentations would be posted online. She reported that she is establishing contact with various organizations to schedule presentations for futures meetings, and she asked that Council members forward to her any contacts that they might have. Diedre Newton mentioned that she forwarded a contact for DBPR, and Ms. Howard confirmed receipt of the information.

Ms. Howard reported that the Legal Division at DFS is working to provide her with clarification on any limitations for sponsorship and funding for the Financial Literacy Council. Chairman Piedra mentioned that the Financial Literacy Council needs to establish guidelines for funding, mentioning the costs of travel to the meetings. He solicited help from other council members. Doug Heinlen mentioned that there might be an opportunity for funding through the National Governors Association. Jim DeSantis mentioned that through his work wit the Florida Council on Economic Education (FCEE), he has developed a good inventory of public and private sources for funding in Florida. He volunteered to serve on a committee to help gather this information.

Ms. Howard also mentioned that she had spoken to Marta Arrington, Director for the Florida Department of Financial Services Division of Consumer Services regarding some of the questions that the council members posed at their first meeting. Ms. Arrington said that the Division is currently conducting an assessment of consumer requests, and she will be happy to have someone from the Division come before the Council at their next
meeting in Tampa to make a presentation.

Finalize Mission and Goals
Chairman Piedra asked everyone to refer to the minutes for the June 25, 2007 meeting to review the mission statement, draft target issues, and draft goals and strategies. Deidre Newton asked that the Financial Literacy Council rank the three target issues as follows:
1. Property taxes, mortgages and insurance
2. Financial Life Cycle of the Consumer
3. Consumer fraud, prevention and recovery

Liana Fernandez Fox offered her commendations to the group for the development of the mission, goals, and target issues. She stated that her priority is goal #2, especially education. She mentioned that there is great deal of opportunity available in this area, for example liberal arts mathematics courses.

Cassandra Grayson asked that the Florida Credit Union League be added to the list of organizations listed under draft goal/strategy #1. She suggested that the Council make the list a working list. Doug Heinlen asked that we add any states that have made great strides with financial literacy initiatives, i.e. Nebraska. Deidre Newton asked that we strike the last bullet listed under draft goal #2: “Focus on insurance, mortgage, and real estate.”

Paul Auslander mentioned that there is an opportunity for publicity in the Wall Street Journal. The Council encouraged Mr. Auslander to pursue the opportunity, and R. Jai Howard offered assistance through Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink’s Press Office.

Jim DeSantis mentioned that he had another article he wanted to share with the Council members and said he would forward it to R. Jai Howard for distribution to the group. Mr. DeSantis also mentioned that there are eight centers across the state dedicated to economic education, two of which are affiliated with the FCEE. One is located at USF, and he volunteered to help R. Jai Howard set up a tour of the Center when the Council comes to Tampa for their August meeting. He also mentioned that Ms. Howard should try to contact two Gubernatorial Fellows who produced a white paper on financial literacy last year. He gave Tyler Cathey’s name and contact information in the Governor’s Office. Ms. Howard will find out more information and try to get a copy of the paper for the council.

Preview of Draft Agenda
FLC members were asked to review the draft agenda for the August 15, 2007 meeting in Tampa that was sent to them. Deidre Newton asked that the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) be added to the agenda. Dulce Suarez-Resnick asked that we someone to speak on the issue of property taxes. Chairman Piedra suggested that Ms. Howard also establish contact with the Department of Elder Affairs, Office of Insurance Regulation, and the Florida League of Cities.

Chairman Piedra proposed that the December meeting scheduled to be in Miami be moved to November 14 and that a conference call take place on December 12. At the December conference call the Financial Literacy Council will review the draft of their report due to the Governor and Legislature in January 2008. Council members agreed, R. Jai Howard mentioned that the updated meeting schedule would be sent out and posted on www.MyFloridaMoney.com.

Meeting Adjourned

June 25, 2007
Tallahassee, FL

Council Members Present:
Paul Auslander
James DeSantis
Richard George
Cassandra J. Grayson
Deidre Newton
Obdulio Piedra
Dulce Suarez-Resnick
*Mike Mahon, representing AARP in Doug Heinlen’s absence

Council Members Absent:
Liana Fox
Doug Heinlen

The first meeting of the Financial Literacy Council was held on June 25, 2007 at 9:00 a.m. in the Capitol, House Office Building Room 306, Tallahassee, Florida. The meeting was opened by R. Jai Howard, Florida Department of Financial Services, Staff Director of the Financial Literacy Council.

Welcome and Introductions
Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink welcomed the members of the Financial Literacy Council, and thanked them for agreeing to serve on the council. CFO Sink gave an overview of the Florida Department of Financial Services (DFS), placing an emphasis on the need for financial education and advocacy of Florida consumers.

Members of the Financial Literacy Council introduced themselves and the organizations they represent:
Dulce Suarez-Resnick, HBA Insurance Group
Cassandra J. Grayson, Florida Credit Union League
Paul Auslander, American Financial Advisors, Inc.
Deidre Newton, Community Real Estate Services
Richard George, Junior Achievement of West Central Florida
Jim DeSantis, Florida Council on Economic Education
Obdulio Piedra, Great Florida Bank
Mike Mahon, AARP

R. Jai Howard, Staff Director of the Financial Literacy Council introduced DFS staff that would be helping throughout the day: Marsha Cantrell, Mechele McBride, and Elisa Altomaro.

Overview of the Financial Literacy Council’s Charge*
R. Jai Howard gave an overview of Florida House Bill 825 from 2006, which established the Financial Literacy Council. The overview included the following: creation of the Financial Literacy Council; Purpose; Membership; Meetings, Procedures and Records; Powers and Duties; Resources; Expiration; Annual Reporting Requirements; and Contingent Appropriation.

Government in the Sunshine – Public Records and Ethics
Mechele McBride, Assistant General Council, DFS Division of Legal Services reviewed the “Government in the Sunshine Law” and the Florida Code of Ethics for Public Officials. Ms. McBride reviewed the following: the Council’s prohibition from solicitation and acceptance of gifts, prohibition from accepting unauthorized compensation, misuse of public position, and conflicts of private interest and public duties. She informed council members that the “Government in the Sunshine” Law requires all meetings of the council to be open to the public, publicly noticed in advance and documented by minutes. Ms. McBride mentioned that “meetings” was a broadly defined term and included any communications between two or more council members that pertained to council business. She also reviewed the Public Meetings and Records section of the Florida Statutes (F.S. 286.011) that requires all records regarding council business to be made available for public inspection. Council members were advised to contact the Financial Literacy Council Staff Director or the Florida Commission on Ethics if there are issues that need further clarification.

R. Jai Howard asked members of the audience to introduce themselves to the Financial Literacy Council. Those in the audience were as follows:

Election of the Chair
R. Jai Howard opened the floor for nominations for the Chairman of the Financial Literacy Council. Richard George nominated Obdulio Piedra, and the motion was seconded by Paul Auslander. The motion passed unanimously.

Financial Literacy Council Discussion – Part I
Each member of council had the opportunity to speak about the issues, priorities, and needs of their respective constituency groups. Council members also discussed their goals for the council.

Chair Obdulio Piedra led a discussion of what presentations the council would like to see at future meetings. Those mentioned included the following: DFS Division of Consumer Services (break down of 450,000 consumer calls received each year, outreach activities, etc.), FL Department of Business and Professional Regulation, FL Department of Education, Florida Association of Mortgage Brokers, Florida Bankers Association, Financial Planning Association of Florida, Florida Association of Realtors, local bar associations, insurance associations, Florida Institute of CPAs, and America Saves. The council is also interested in receiving information from staff on the following: inventory of Florida organizations and schools covering financial literacy, list of all publications produced by DFS.

Chair Piedra also led a discussion about the meeting schedule for the Financial Literacy Council. The proposed schedule was based on a quarterly meeting schedule, with 2 additional meetings in 2007: August 14 in Tampa and November 13 in Miami. The council decided to meet monthly for the remainder of the year. The new meeting schedule is listed below:

Staff Presentation
R. Jai Howard, Staff Director of the Financial Literacy Council provided a presentation entitled “Snapshot of Financial Literacy.” The presentation gave an overview of current Financial Literacy initiatives of the Department of Financial Services and the Florida Office of Financial Regulation. She highlighted other programs in the state offered by the Florida Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Literacy, Inc., Florida Council on Economic Education, and the Florida Institute of CPAs. Ms. Howard also included in her discussion financial literacy initiatives in Illinois, North Carolina, and Massachusetts.

Financial Literacy Council Discussion – Part II
Elisa Altomaro, Department of Financial Services, facilitated the afternoon session for the Financial Literacy Council. In this session the council adopted a mission statement and developed a draft of target issues and goals/strategies.

Mission statement adopted:
To help all Floridians make informed financial decisions.

Draft of Target Issues:
1. Consumer fraud, prevention and recovery

Draft Goals and Strategies
1. Study financial problems that affect consumers, which arise from a basic lack of knowledge of financial issues.

2. Make recommendations for the creation of a single state resource that empowers consumers and small business to make informed financial decisions.

3. Study and make recommendations to help citizens and small businesses learn more about financial issues.

Public Remarks
Mike Mahon suggested that we ask audience members to comment on the session to make sure that nothing was left out. The following people offered comments:

Closing Remarks
Chair Obdulio Piedra asked R. Jai Howard to clarify if there are any restrictions or limitations for funding that the council can receive. He also asked council members to brainstorm potential funding sources, to be discussed at the next meeting. The Chair thanked everyone for a great first meeting and reminded everyone of the next meeting – July 11 conference call at 10:00 a.m.

Meeting Adjourned