Department Of Labor And Certified Financial Planner Board Of Standards Launch New Savings Fitness Tool For Consumers

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - To help Americans strengthen their retirement savings, the Department of Labor and the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards (CFP Board) are introducing a new guideline for savings fitness, a comprehensive, free booklet entitled Savings Fitness: A Guide to Your Money and Your Financial Future.

The booklet outlines how Americans can plan for their retirements by adding a savings plan to their financial lives. Consumers can receive the free, 20-page step-by-step guide to financial planning for retirement by contacting the Department of Labor toll-free at 1-800-998-7542.

"It's easy to say Americans should save more, but they also need the tools to do so. In this savings guide for retirement, people will find the information they need to get started, and to begin ?buying their retirement’ - one of the most important purchases we make over a lifetime of working," said Labor Department’s Assistant Secretary for Pension and Welfare Benefits Leslie Kramerich.

The consumer guide to saving is another step in the Department of Labor's Retirement Savings Education Campaign begun in 1995. To produce an educational tool for Americans that reflects up-to-the-moment information and demonstrates how saving is a part of creating a financial plan, the Labor Department partnered with the CFP Board, a nonprofit, professional regulatory organization that exists to benefit the public by fostering professional standards in financial planning.

"We're delighted to be partnering with DOL and to be a part of this important educational tool for consumers," said Patricia P. Houlihan, CFP Board Chair. "Financial planning is all about managing your resources to meet your personal goals, and saving is the biggest tool we have to make our goals a reality. Saving and investing to reach goals such as retirement help give each of us greater control over our futures and more choices about how we want to live today - something that's very much part of the American approach to life."

The new saving guide seems especially needed now, given the low rate of personal saving as reported monthly by the Commerce Department, said Kramerich. The personal saving rate in December 1999 was just 1.5 percent, lower than the 2.4 percent logged for 1999 overall — which itself is the lowest one-year rate recorded in more than a generation.

The new Department of Labor/CFP Board resource for consumers addresses key financial planning issues, including assessing your financial situation, establishing goals, creating a savings habit, building investments, using appropriate retirement savings plans and keeping track of your progress toward savings goals.

"We want everyone to succeed in setting financial and retirement goals," said Kramerich. "This new resource will start people on their way to setting goals and putting retirement high on their lists of personal priorities."

The U.S. Department of Labor's Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration (PWBA) protects the integrity of pensions, health plans, and other employee benefits for more than 150 million people. The PWBA assists workers in getting the information they need to protect their benefit rights; assists plan officials to understand the requirements of the relevant statutes in order to meet their legal responsibilities; develops policies and laws that encourage the growth of employment-based benefits; and deters and corrects violations of the relevant statutes. For more on PWBA, visit www.dol.gov/dol/pwba.

The CFP Board is a nonprofit professional regulatory organization founded in 1985 to benefit the public by fostering professional standards in personal financial planning. An independent certifying organization, the CFP Board owns the CFP certification mark and the marks CFP® and CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER®. At end-of-year 1999, there were over 34,600 individuals licensed to use these marks in the U.S. For more on the CFP Board, visit www.CFP-Board.org.

U.S. Department of Labor news releases are accessible on the Internet. The information in this news release will be made available in alternate format upon request (large print, Braille, audio tape or disc) from the Central Office for Assistive Services and Technology. Please specify which news release when placing your request. Call 202.693.7773 or TTY 202.693.7775.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.