LANSING — State Rep. Sarah Anthony (D-Lansing) introduced House Resolution 479 today, which designates Dec22 as Children’s Savings Account Awareness Day. Children’s Savings Accounts (CSAs) offer several benefits for families, including the opportunity to pay for higher education expenses, especially at one of Michigan’s public universities or community colleges. The initiatives are also instrumental in teaching young people crucial money management skills. Children with dedicated college savings are four times more likely to complete a degree by age 26.
“CSAs are often underutilized by families who could benefit from them the most,” said Rep. Anthony. “It is vital that the next generation is empowered to use CSA programs as a tool to achieve a stable economic future. These savings programs aren’t just about saving money; they are about providing our children the tools they need to accomplish their dreams and shape their own future.”
There is a disproportionately low use of CSAs in communities of color and lower income families. Only 27 percent of Latinx and 11 percent African-American use CSA programs. For low-income students, only 7 percent of those who do not have some sort of CSA graduate from college compared to the 33 percent with a CSA that do.