Department of Treasury Financial Education Core Competencies Proposal

On September 13, 2010, CFP Board sent a comment letter to the Department of the Treasury in support of Treasury’s efforts to develop financial education core competencies. Treasury’s proposal defines five core concept areas — earning, spending, saving, borrowing, and protecting — and identifies a baseline knowledge and set of behaviors associated with each. In its letter, CFP Board stated its agreement that more needs to be done to create a baseline of knowledge on personal finance topics for consumers and financial education providers, and that the development of core competencies represents a fundamental step in achieving this goal and will serve as a foundation for financial education in the U.S.