The FIELD program is a project through the Aspen Institute to increase awareness and funding for microenterprise for low-income families. While wages are important to economic security, accumulating assets can often help families along the way to self-sufficiency. Microenterprise programs in the United States have offered opportunities to low-income families to build wealth and acquire assets. This guide describes innovative microenterprise programs that support low-income families around the country.

This toolkit on the Earned Income Tax Credit was developed by the Institute for Youth, Education, and Families (YEF Institute) at the National League of Cities in 2004, and has since been updated with the latest information on the EITC. The toolkit includes information to help support municipal leaders in maximizing the potential of the EITC in their localities. Specifically based on research and best practices, NLC’s YEF Institute provides ideas for action, examples from cities, advice for local elected officials, and timelines and materials for EITC campaign activities, as well as other issues relating to youth, education and families.

This resource paper is through the Brookings Institution and offers strategies on making markets more affordable for the poor. The author, Matt Fellowes, offers strategies to help reduce the high cost prices in low-income markets such as offering incentives for businesses to enter lower-income markets and investing in tools so low-income consumers can be better informed about financial decisions.

This resource from the Urban Institute’s Robert Lerman includes his thoughts on asset promotion policies. New asset policies are driven by the goal that the accumulation and ownership of assets is critical to move low income families into the middle class. Among the benefits of asset building include the psychological benefits from making positive decisions that enhance economic and social well-being.

This is a speech given by Alan Berube of the Brookings Institution to Congressional staff on the benefits of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) to urban economies. In this resource, Mr. Berube defines ways that members can maximize the EITC benefit to support low-income families. As well as providing significant benefits to families in cities and suburbs, the EITC has been proven to stimulate local economic activity.

This publication is part of a series on examining strategies for financing supports and services to assist youth in foster care transition into adulthood. This brief reviews financial education and asset building strategies to support youth aging out of foster care, including partner agencies and resources that communities can leverage to support youth.

This analysis was conducted by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and discusses the availability of federal tax credits for higher education for low-income students. Currently, low-income students who attend college face high costs of attendance even after taking into account governmental and institutional aid. In 2003-2004, 85 percent of undergraduates from families with incomes below $20,000 had unmet financial need.

The child tax credit is the largest federal cash assistance program for children. In 2007, tax filers can claim a credit equal to 15 percent of the excess of earnings over $11,750, up to the $1,000 per child. Authors find that among working families, more than 30 percent of qualifying children under age 2 are in families with earnings too low to qualify for the full credit.

The Welfare Peer Technical Assistance Network sponsored this Roundtable on May 9-10, 2007, in Boise, Idaho. The principal goals of the Roundtable were to build and enhance partnerships statewide between social services providers, Idaho TANF Agency, business leaders, faith-based organizations, etc., with an aim toward helping low wage earning families achieve financial self-sufficiency.

The Earned Income Tax Credit can provide low-income families the necessary support to attain self-sufficiency. This report from the Annie E. Casey Foundation provides key lessons learned from EITC-related tax sites around the country. While EITC initiatives have been successful in supporting working families, sites have experienced challenges in integrating asset building and tax preparation services. Authors give information on how sites around the country and integrating EITC initiatives with asset building strategies.