Six U.S. Municipalities Selected to Create Local Wealth Building Strategies

Kansas City, MO; Memphis, TN; Milwaukee County, WI; Savannah, GA; Springfield, MA; and St. Petersburg, FL chosen by Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund

NEW YORK, June 2, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the national nonprofit Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund (CFE Fund) announced that a new cohort of six cities and counties – Kansas City, MO; Memphis, TN; Milwaukee County, WI; Savannah, GA; Springfield, MA; and St. Petersburg, FL – have been selected to participate in the CityStart initiative. The CityStart initiative works closely with local leaders to develop and implement proven strategies aimed at helping families and communities become more financially stable.

"Across the country, local leaders are stepping up to financially empower residents through government programs and policies. We are excited to team up with this new CityStart cohort as they create actionable plans for meaningfully improving residents' financial lives," said Jonathan Mintz, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund.

Through the CityStart initiative, each municipality will receive a $100,000 grant to help craft innovative, actionable blueprints tailored to their communities that foster financial stability across generations. The blueprints will align with and serve to support each local Administration's priorities and partnership opportunities.

Local leaders can also learn from and alongside other cohort partners and from previous cohorts across the country through opportunities including idea exchanges, sharing of data collection strategies, and comparing information regarding local policies and programs to address mutual challenges.  

Cities from previous CityStart cohorts have already started to introduce innovative policy changes and new programs while prioritizing resident wealth accumulation. For example, Cincinnati, OH leveraged the CityStart engagement to create its Financial Freedom Plan – informed by more than 1,000 residents and dozens of organizations and experts across the private, public, and social sectors. The city dedicated $2 million in public funds to forgive resident medical debt and advance other priorities. In Leon County, FL, their CityStart blueprint focused on housing efforts like emergency repair and legal assistance for heirs' property issues; better connection to safety net programs like transportation, healthcare, and mental health; and new financial stability resources like Financial Empowerment Center financial counseling and banking access for youth employment programs.

This marks the seventh CityStart cohort. To date, 44 localities have participated in the CityStart financial empowerment blueprint process. Drawing on over a decade of CFE Fund work in nearly 150 cities and counties, the CityStart initiative leverages insights into financial instability impact, crafting measurable strategies to enhance residents' financial well-being.

About the Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund (CFE Fund)
The CFE Fund supports municipal efforts to improve the financial stability of households by leveraging opportunities unique to local government. By translating cutting edge experience with large scale programs, research, and policy in cities of all sizes, the CFE Fund assists mayors and other local leaders in nearly 150 cities and counties to identify, develop, fund, implement, and research pilots and programs that help families build assets and make the most of their financial resources – including 44 local governments that already have participated in the CityStart engagement. The CFE Fund has disbursed over $69 million in grant support to municipal partners. For more information, please visit www.cfefund.org or follow us on Bluesky at @cfefund.bsky.social.

Media Contact:
Mia Katsuleres
[email protected]
203-837-6918 

SOURCE Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund