Aspen Institute To Hold Briefing on Efforts to 'Tap Tax Time' to Build Americans' Financial Security

Capitol Hill Briefing To Take Place Thursday Morning

WASHINGTON, Sept. 22 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Aspen Institute Initiative on Financial Security (Aspen IFS) will host a congressional briefing on Capitol Hill Thursday morning on Tapping Tax Time. The briefing will discuss how the US Treasury Department's new and ongoing initiatives are leveraging the tax time moment to encourage, inform, and empower Americans to build their financial security. The briefing will take place Thursday, September 23^rd at 8:00-9:30 AM in Room SVC 203-02 in the Capitol Visitor's Center.

Featured experts include Michael Barr and Mark Iwry at the US Department of the Treasury, Lisa Mensah and Robert Weinberger of the Aspen Institute Initiative on Financial Security, and Peter Tufano of Harvard Business School.

"Tax time is the moment when the concept of 'financial security' is made real for so many Americans -- when numbers on a page are given context, when household finances are laid bare, and most importantly, when the opportunity to build towards a better financial future is possible," says Lisa Mensah, Executive Director of the Aspen Institute Initiative on Financial Security. "It is time we tap this important moment and help Americans achieve greater financial security."

Michael Barr, assistant secretary for financial institutions at the US Department of the Treasury will be on hand to talk about Treasury's efforts to improve the tax administration process while simultaneously providing opportunity for low- and moderate-income people to get financial access and build assets. His remarks will include the recently announced pilot program of opening low-cost, safe financial accounts at tax time for millions of Americans currently left out of the financial mainstream.

Both Mark Iwry and Peter Tufano are expected to stress the importance of tax time savings. Tufano will explain how the tax filing infrastructure has been recently amended to allow for direct purchase of US savings bonds with tax refund receipts, while Iwry will detail the Obama Administration's proposed enhancement of the Saver's Credit and how the proposal, paired with Automatic IRA promises to bolster the retirement preparedness of millions of Americans.

Robert Weinberger, Senior Fellow at the Aspen Institute Initiative on Financial Security, will close out the event discussing how recent efforts to license tax preparers should include mandatory training on how to help Americans leverage the tax code and the tax moment to build household financial security. "Tax time is an annual opportunity for millions of Americans to jumpstart their financial futures," says Weinberger. "With over 60% of Americans relying on paid tax preparers, policymakers should work to arm the legions of licensed tax professionals with the information needed to help Americans leverage this important moment."

For additional information about the Tapping Tax Time event and the work of the Aspen Institute Initiative on Financial Security, please contact Raymond O'Mara at (202)736-2929 or [email protected].

About Aspen IFS:

The Aspen Institute Initiative on Financial Security (Aspen IFS) is a leading policy program dedicated to helping bring about the policies and financial products that enable all Americans to save, invest, and own. For more information about Aspen IFS and its work, please visit www.aspenifs.org.

The Aspen Institute mission is twofold: to foster values-based leadership, encouraging individuals to reflect on the ideals and ideas that define a good society, and to provide a neutral and balanced venue for discussing and acting on critical issues. The Aspen Institute does this primarily in four ways: seminars, young-leader fellowships around the globe, policy programs, and public conferences and events. The Institute is based in Washington, DC; Aspen, Colorado; and on the Wye River on Maryland's Eastern Shore. It also has an international network of partners.

SOURCE The Aspen Institute