Albuquerque Receives Grant Award to Kickstart Municipal Financial Empowerment Efforts
August 6, 2018
Mayor Tim Keller, along with the Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund (CFE Fund) today announced Albuquerque’s selection as one of ten cities to receive a planning grant and technical assistance to identify and plan for municipal financial empowerment strategies for Albuquerque residents.
The CFE Fund’s CityStart initiative, with support from JPMorgan Chase and others, offers mayors and their administrations a structured approach to identify financial empowerment goals, convene stakeholders for sustainable success, develop concrete strategies, and ultimately craft an actionable blueprint rooted in local priorities and opportunities. Albuquerque will receive an intensive 6-9 month technical assistance engagement partnership, along with a $20,000 planning grant. In addition to City of Albuquerque, other selected cities chosen through a competitive process include: Anchorage, AK: Dallas, TX; Durham, NC; El Paso, TX; Fort Worth, TX; Portland, OR; Rochester, NY; Saint Paul, MN; and Tulsa, OK.
“We believe that all Burqueños deserve access to the kind of financial resources that give folks a chance to get ahead,” stated Mayor Tim Keller. “This grant will allow us to continue building an economy that works for everyone.”
“Cities control a host of policies, programs, and funding streams that can transform the lives of residents with low incomes on a large scale. Across the nation, more and more city leaders are embracing high-quality financial empowerment programs to improve the financial stability of their city residents and communities,” said Jonathan Mintz, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund. “We congratulate Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller and look forward to working with him to empower Albuquerque residents, and we thank JPMorgan Chase for their longstanding commitment to and investment in municipal financial empowerment.”
The CityStart initiative draws on the CFE Fund’s extensive programmatic work with local government leaders in over 60 cities, connecting on-the-ground insights about the impact of financial instability on families, communities, and municipal budgets with tangible, measurable, and sustainable municipal strategies to improve families' financial lives.
Together with the CFE Fund, Mayor Keller’s CityStart initiative will host a day-long financial empowerment "boot camp" event that brings together key local constituencies. Based on issues identified in the boot camp, as well as the City’s commitment to economic equity and inclusion, Albuquerque will craft its municipal financial empowerment blueprint identifying actionable implementation steps. CityStart cities have historically leveraged their engagement with the CFE Fund to further their commitment to this work.
In June, the City of Albuquerque released a report that examined dozens of indicators of economic and social inclusion. That report revealed racial disparities in income and found that equitable growth leads to a stronger local economy for everyone.
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 to identify, develop, fund, implement, and research pilots and programs that help families build assets and make the most of their financial resources. The CFE Fund also supports the award-winning Cities for Financial Empowerment Coalition, a 10-year-old organization whose invited member cities share best practices and cutting edge strategies for municipal financial empowerment success. For more information, please visit www.cfefund.org or follow us on Twitter at @CFEFund.