April 27, 2007
HP-371
Treasury Releases ‘Choose to Save
Television Commercial during National
Financial Literacy Month
Washington, DC – The U.S. Treasury launched its first financial education television commercial this week to encourage Americans to save for important life events. The "Choose to Save" public service announcement, a product of a partnership with the American Savings Education Council (ASEC), arrives during national financial literacy month and promotes free government resources for financial planning available on the website www.MyMoney.gov and toll-free hotline 1-888-MyMoney.
The 30-second public service announcement, part of ASEC's broader Choose to Save series of radio and television spots, can be found at www.treas.gov/financialeducation. The National Association of Broadcasters is nationally distributing the commercial, which was created at WJLA-TV in Washington, D.C.
"The goal of this television spot is to make more Americans aware of the federal government's treasure of free, non-biased financial planning resources," said Deputy Assistant Secretary for Financial Education Dan Iannicola, Jr. "Before the MyMoney.gov website, this information was all a hidden treasure, spread across more than 20 government web sites. This commercial tells everyone that now they only need to know one place to visit."
The ad directs viewers to the federal government's one-stop shop website for personal finance information. The MyMoney.gov website, available in both English and Spanish, has links to materials that teach the importance of saving for retirement, managing credit cards, investing, avoiding scams and many other useful subjects. Users can also test their financial literacy knowledge with the Money 20 quiz.
The April release of the Choose to Save commercial coincides with Financial Literacy Month, a national observance to promote wise money management. The month has been recognized by resolutions by both houses of Congress and with events across the country.
"Managing your money is a year-round job, but this month we join with our financial literacy partners in government, business and the non-profit world to encourage Americans to take the first steps to learning more about their money," Iannicola said. "With that knowledge Americans have the power to plan a secure financial future."
Treasury heads the Congressionally-mandated Financial Literacy and Education Commission. The 20-agency federal commission created the MyMoney.gov website and toll-free hotline in October 2004 and released a national strategy for financial literacy in April 2006.
ASEC and ChoosetoSave.org are educational programs of the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute.
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