HR 8373
Improving Access to Financial Coaching Act of 2026
Take action
Record your position on this measure.
Sign in to record your position, submit testimony, or contact your legislator.
Sign in to take action- Introduced
- Passed House
- Passed Senate
- To President
- Became Law
Bill overview
The Improving Access to Financial Coaching Act of 2026 aims to establish a federal program that provides grants to nonprofit organizations, community development financial institutions, and minority depository institutions to offer financial coaching services. The goal is to increase access to financial guidance, particularly for low- and moderate-income households and underserved communities, and to develop standards for financial coach certification. The Treasury Department will administer the program and research best practices for financial coaching.
Key provisions
- Establishes a federal grant program for financial coaching services.
- Eligible recipients include nonprofits, CDFIs, and minority depository institutions.
- Grants can be used for general operating purposes or to award subgrants to other organizations.
- Grants prioritize areas with low-to-moderate income and high minority populations.
- The program will focus on elevating best practices and developing standardized coach credentialing.
- The Treasury Department will administer and evaluate the program.
- The program is authorized to receive $100 million in appropriations over four fiscal years.
- Funds are allocated with 55% for direct grants to organizations and 45% for technical assistance and subgrants.
Who is affected
- Low- and moderate-income households
- Nonprofit organizations
- Community development financial institutions
- Minority depository institutions
- Consumers seeking financial guidance
Sponsors
Official sponsors from legislative records.
Primary sponsor
Cosponsors
Eleanor Holmes [D-DC-At Large] Norton
Arguments in favor
Reasons to support this legislation.
No arguments in favor have been submitted.
Submit yoursArguments opposed
Reasons to oppose this legislation.
No arguments opposed have been submitted.
Submit yoursRead the latest version inline or switch to a previous version.
119th CONGRESS — 2d Session
H. R. 8373
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
A BILL
To direct the Secretary of the Treasury, acting through the Director of the Office of Consumer Policy, to establish a program to award grants to eligible entities to provide financial coaching services, and for other purposes.
This Act may be cited as the Improving Access to Financial Coaching Act of 2026
.
Congress finds that—
many consumers, particularly low- and moderate-income households, face significant challenges in managing personal finances, reducing debt, building savings, and accessing responsible credit;
financial coaching services have been shown to improve financial stability, increase long-term financial capability, improve credit scores, and reduce vulnerability to economic shocks;
nonprofit and community-based organizations play a critical role in training and deploying financial coaches to deliver culturally competent, accessible, and individualized financial coaching services to consumers in need;
the Department of the Treasury, through its Office of Consumer Policy, is well-positioned to administer a national program supporting financial coaching initiatives that promote household financial resilience and economic mobility; and
the absence of uniform certification standards for financial coaches results in inconsistent service quality and restricts the professional development of practitioners, underscoring the need for Federal support to inform a standardization of credentialing for financial coaches and agencies that provide these services.
The purposes of this Act are—
to establish a Federal program to provide grants to eligible organizations offering financial coaching services to consumers;
to strengthen the capacity of community-based providers to deliver effective, evidence-based financial coaching;
to enhance consumer financial well-being by increasing access to trusted, high-quality financial guidance; and
to authorize the Office of Consumer Policy within the Department of the Treasury to administer, oversee, and evaluate the program; and to research and develop standardized practices for certifying financial coaches and the agencies that employ them.
Director), shall establish a program to award grants to eligible entities to provide financial coaching services.
To be eligible for a grant under this section, an entity shall—
be—
a nonprofit, community-based organization;
a community development financial institution (as defined in section 103 of the Community Development Banking and Financial Institutions Act of 1994 (12 U.S.C. 4702)); or
a minority depository institution (as defined in section 308(b) of the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989 (12 U.S.C. 1463 note)); and
have—
been in operation for not less than 1 year;
if serving a clientele or service area with a high rate of non-English proficiency speakers, established relationships with private, public, or nonprofit community-based entities that provide non-English language services and can provide referrals for financial coaching services;
established, or plans to establish, a financial coaching program as described subsection (c); and
located in, or predominantly serving—
with respect to a census tract located in a metropolitan area, the median family income is at or below 120 percent of the metropolitan median family income; or
with respect to a census tract located outside a metropolitan area, the median family income is at or below 120 percent of the statewide median family income;
a census tract where not less than 50 percent of the population self-identifies as a racial or ethnic minority; or
predominantly serving individuals making at or below 120 percent of the Area Median Income.
An eligible entity that seeks a grant under this section shall submit to the Director an application at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Director requires, including a description of—
a work plan that outlines activities, target audiences, goals, and anticipated results;
the financial stability of such entity, including financial statements and a proposed budget for the financial coaching program of such entity; and
languages served by such entity.
The Secretary shall award grants to eligible entities under this section to be used—
by the eligible entity for general purposes of such entity; or
The Director shall carry out such activities as necessary to help elevate best practices in the financial coaching industry, and to facilitate the development of standardized protocols for credentialing financial coaches and agencies that provide these services.
There is authorized to be appropriated to the Director $100,000,000 for fiscal years 2026 through 2028, of which—
55 percent of such appropriated sum be used for the purposes described in subsection (d)(1); and
45 percent of such appropriated sum be used for the purpose described in subsection (d)(2).
The Director may update the proportions of funds described in paragraph (1) if the Director determines that there are insufficient amounts to carry out either purposes described in paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (d).