Rothfus: Financial Planning Today Means a Better Tomorrow for Western Pennsylvanians

April is Financial Literacy Month.  Taking steps to ensure financial well-being now can help individuals and families save money to buy a house, plan for college or for retirement, and look to the future. 

A good first step to promote your financial health is checking your credit report.  Did you know that you can get one free credit report every year from each of the top three credit reporting agencies: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion?  Reviewing your credit report can also help alert you to any potential identity theft and fraud.

There are many other resources available to help you learn more about how to budget, save, invest, use credit responsibly, improve your credit rating, and protect yourself from identity theft.

www.MyMoney.gov, the Financial Literacy and Education Commission’s website, provides resources on everything from creating a monthly budget to balancing your checkbook.  The “Life’s Events” page provides helpful financial guidance for significant financial milestones, from planning for the birth of your first child to planning for your retirement.

www.MoneysBestFriend.com, a website operated by the Pennsylvania Department of Banking and Securities, can help connect you with services offered by state and local governments and private organizations.  The Department will also host the first Money Matters Education Conference in Cranberry Township on April 30. You can learn more about this free event at www.dobs.state.pa.us.

Financial literacy is important at every age and stage of life.  Unfortunately, many young adults graduate from high school or college without even a basic understanding of personal finance.  It is important that parents engage children in conversation starting early in life about kitchen table issues like creating a budget, paying bills, and filing taxes.

While financial literacy starts at home, educators can also help their students prepare for the future.  The Pennsylvania Department of Banking provides many resources including books, best practices, interactive websites, and online games that educators can use in teaching personal finance to elementary, middle school, and high school students.  The Pennsylvania Department of Education is hosting a webinar in conjunction with Penn State University that may also be helpful to educators.  The webinar, entitled “Making Cents: Financial Literacy and Economic Education,” is free and will take place on April 30.  You can sign up at Rothfus.house.gov/register-for-making-cents.  It will also be recorded and made available to Pennsylvania educators.

You can protect your family and plan for the future if you take some time today to establish and maintain healthy financial habits.

I encourage you to stay in touch by signing up for the Rothfus Report and connecting on Facebook and Twitter. As always, please do not hesitate to email me or to call the office if we can help.

For more tips on financial literacy, visit:

U.S. Financial Literacy and Education Commission
www.mymoney.gov/
(888) 696-6639 

Jump$tart Pennsylvania
www.jumpstart.org/states-pennsylvania.html
(570) 602-3600

Pennsylvania Department of Banking and Securities
www.dobs.state.pa.us/
(717) 214-4755

Keith Rothfus represents Pennsylvania's Twelfth Congressional District, which includes all of Beaver County and portions of Allegheny, Cambria, Lawrence, Somerset, and Westmoreland Counties.