Special Trustee Appointed to Financial Literacy & Education Commission

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Vincent Logan, Special Trustee for American Indians, is appointed to the Financial Literacy and Education Commission (FLEC). As the Department of the Interior’s representative, he brings a working knowledge of Indian Country, as well as years of experience in the financial private sector, to the table.

As the first voice to represent Indian Country on the commission, Special Trustee Logan is uniquely qualified to advocate for the United States’ Native and Indigenous population. Native communities face unique and diverse challenges in the realm of financial education, and currently the Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians (OST) is among the leaders in the federal government in working to address these needs. Already, robust and beneficial relationships between the OST and FLEC members such as the SEC, the CFPB, and the Federal Reserve, just to name a few, have been established to move the needle for many tribal peoples across the nation. The nomination of Interior to the FLEC sends a clear message to native peoples that their concerns will be heard and, moreover, that the lessons learned from experiences within Indian Country will add to the greater understanding of how to address these issues in the US at large.

“It is fitting for Interior to be a part of FLEC because the national conversation on financial literacy is here to stay,” said Brian Ross, OST’s Director of Financial Education. “Indian Country deserves a voice in discussions related to personal financial empowerment and a seat at the table where ideas and solutions emerge.”

As a new member of the FLEC, Vincent Logan will deliver remarks to the commission as well as participate in the discussion regarding the FLEC National Strategy Update for 2016.

The FLEC was established under the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003. The Commission was tasked to develop a national financial education web site ( MyMoney.gov) and a national strategy on financial education. It is chaired by the Secretary of the Treasury and the vice chair is the Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The Commission is made up of the heads of 19 additional federal agencies: the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency; the Federal Reserve; the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation; the National Credit Union Administration; the Securities and Exchange Commission; the Departments of Education, Agriculture, Defense, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Labor, and Veterans Affairs; the Federal Trade Commission; the General Services Administration; the Small Business Administration; the Social Security Administration; the Commodity Futures Trading Commission; the Office of Personnel Management; the White House Domestic Policy Council and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The Commission is coordinated by the Department of the Treasury's Office of Financial Education within the Office Consumer Policy.

“This is an important step in elevating Indian Country’s voice in the conversation regarding financial wellness and responsibility, as a whole,” said Vincent Logan, Special Trustee for American Indians. “OST, through its employees in the field, has its finger on the pulse of issues that are affecting the lives of our beneficiaries every day. I have a lot to share with the commission and look forward to our work together.”

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