featured story

In the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the state of Louisiana has taken steps to make asset building a priority. The Louisiana Department of Social Services has embraced the concept of asset building, and is implementing programs that offer opportunities for asset building to low- and moderate-income residents.

Read full story >
Read all stories >

Donate to CFED >

About
Measuring Ownership in America

***Purchase the 16-page, color guide of the Scorecard*** 

There is perhaps no better or more tangible indicator of the ability of an economy than the store of financial, business, home, education and health assets and protections built by families.  Not only does an accounting of the amount, range and distribution of assets of an economy provide an incisive picture of the current health and resilience of an economy, but, more importantly, it reflects the ability of an economy and the families within it to adapt to, take advantage of and shape the future. 

CFED has long been an advocate for asset building and the role it plays in alleviating poverty and bolstering financial security for individuals and families. Assets move families beyond living paycheck to paycheck and give them tools to plan for the future. "Getting by" may require only a paycheck, but getting ahead requires a variety of assets, a financial safety net, education, and health care.

The lion's share of responsibility for building assets and creating opportunity rests with individuals and families. But the public sector contributes as well. The federal government provides at least $367 billion annually in programs and tax incentives that promote individual asset building, with most of the benefits going to the middle and upper classes.¹ Safety nets such as Social Security and Medicare play critical roles as well.

State policies are also an important part of helping families build assets and safety nets, or can, in some cases, impede their efforts. The Assets and Opportunity Scorecard looks at how families are doing across the states, and measures state policies that affect this picture.

Divided into six indexes — Financial Security, Business Development, Homeownership, Health Care, Education, and Tax Policy and Accountability — the Assets and Opportunity Scorecard ranks the 50 states and the District of Columbia on their performance in 84 outcome and policy measures. The state-level data highlight areas where individuals and families are excelling or lagging in securing a sound financial foundation. The Scorecard also describes what each state government is or is not doing to further foster opportunities for its citizens to own and keep assets.

The Assets and Opportunity Scorecard is the second generation of the State Asset Development Report Card (SADRC), and it continues CFED's far-reaching examination of asset accumulation and asset policy. As with the SADRC in 2002, advocates and policymakers can use the Scorecard as a tool to evaluate their state's strengths and weaknesses and to identify effective policies.

CFED has been in the business of studying and fostering ownership for more than 25 years. Recently, the concept of an "ownership society" has brought greater attention to the value of building and holding assets. This Scorecard measures what we and a number of advocates of asset development believe are the fundamentals of building an ownership society that will benefit us all.

Endnotes

¹ Woo, L., and D. Buchholz (2006). "Return on Investment: Getting More from Federal Asset-Building Policies" Washington, DC: CFED.>