News

On October 19, 2022, the Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition, Inc. (ONAC) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) co-hosted a webinar on identity theft and FTC resources for American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian communities. During the webinar, the FTC shared overview information about identity theft, as well as FTC resources to respond to such theft including prevention and the process for reporting to the FTC if such theft has occurred. Given expansion of broadband in Native communities and the upcoming holiday shopping season, ONAC and the FTC thought it was a good time to share these resources so that Native peoples can try to prevent identity theft. ONAC is grateful to the FTC for their partnership. 

Here is the link to the recorded webinar from the FTC: https://youtu.be/q1fLmko9jlk 

The Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition, Inc. (ONAC) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) are co-hosting a webinar focused on identity theft on Wednesday, October 19, 2022, at 3 p.m. ET, 2:00 p.m. CT.

During the webinar, the FTC will share overview information about identity theft, as well as FTC resources to respond to such theft including prevention and the process for reporting to the FTC if such theft has occurred. This webinar is open to Native communities across the country.

The registration page and registration confirmation email states the webinar begins at 2:30 p.m. ET (that is the start time for speakers). Please note that the official start time for registrants is 3:00 p.m. ET.

Here is the registration link to attend: chttps://ftc.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_chicP_F1Si2JYdjg7OG45w.

The FTC is interested in learning more about what identity theft is currently occurring in Native communities so they can better tailor their prevention materials and enforcement.

If you have been the victim of such theft or are working with Native constituents who are experiencing theft, please join.

ONAC is co-hosting this webinar as part of its comprehensive asset building programming, which includes promotion of financial education and efforts to reduce asset stripping (such as through prevention of identity theft).

We invite you to join on Wednesday, October 19th.

You are invited to a Zoom webinar.

When: Oct 19, 2022 03:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Topic: FTC/ONAC IDT and other FTC Resources Webinar

Register in advance for this webinar:

https://ftc.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_chicP_F1Si2JYdjg7OG45w

Or an H.323/SIP room system:

  H.323: 161.199.138.10 (US West) or 161.199.136.10 (US East)

  Meeting ID: 160 466 7199

  Passcode: 669450

  SIP:1604667199@sip.zoomgov.com

  Passcode: 669450 

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

 

As a follow-up to the co-hosted event with the Aspen Institute and the Aspen Institute Center for Native American Youth, ONAC has prepared a list of eighteen suggestions to support Native asset building practitioners.  The list is available at: https://bit.ly/ONAC18suggestions.

ONAC's Executive Director, Christy Finsel, was invited to co-author a journal article on financial capability and asset building, with a gender and racial equity lens, with Margaret Sherraden of Center for Social Development, Mae Watson Grote of Change Machine, Margaret Libby of MyPath, and Cathie Mahon of Inclusiv. ONAC was honored to participate in this project. 

Finsel, C., Watson Grote, M., Libby, M., Mahon, C., & Sherraden, M. S. (2022). Financial capability and asset building with a racial- and gender-equity lens: Advances from the field. Families in Society, 103(1), 86–100. https://doi.org/10.1177/10443894211063133

News Release

Contact: Christy Finsel, cfinsel@oknativeassets.org, (405) 720-0770 

December 1, 2021                                                           

Paper Released and Event on Friday, December 3, 2021: Distributing Emergency Cash Assistance to Native Families During a Pandemic

Today, the Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition, Inc. (ONAC), is releasing a paper titled, “Distributing Emergency Cash Assistance to Native Families During a Pandemic.”

This publication provides insight and lessons learned regarding the direct distribution of emergency funds to Native families during a pandemic. During the COVID-19 pandemic, ONAC, a Native-led nonprofit serving Native communities across the U.S., has provided emergency cash assistance payments ($500 per applicant) to American Indian and Alaska Native families. In total, ONAC raised funds to support 1,070 families. ONAC worked in partnership with 23 tribes and Native-led nonprofit partners to provide the outreach and referrals for the payments that were distributed to tribal citizens residing in 28 states. 

Through this program, ONAC distributed the funds by checks made payable to the applicants or through ACH transfers to applicants’ bank accounts. As part of the application, ONAC provided Bank On information for those who were not banked and may have wanted to become so as part of the emergency cash assistance program. In addition, ONAC provided free financial coaching for those interested in the service. The effort to distribute emergency cash was met with much gratitude from recipients, but also faced a variety of challenges along the way. This case example highlights both lessons learned and the importance of adequate funding of Native-led nonprofits  - the organizations that are most closely connected with their community members and aware of the areas where community need is greatest. 

ONAC is grateful to the following twenty-three tribal governments and Native-led nonprofits that provided referrals to us for emergency cash assistance: Four Directions Development Corporation, Tlingit Haida Regional Housing Authority, The Wichita and Affiliated Tribes, Nixyaawii Community Financial Services, Osage Financial Resources, Inc., Citizen Potawatomi Community Development Corporation, Wisconsin Native Loan Fund, Chickasaw Nation, White Earth Investment Initiative, The United Houma Nation, Cherokee Nation, Sac and Fox Nation, Seldovia Village Tribe, Absentee Shawnee Housing Authority, Lakota Funds, Modoc Nation, and anonymous Native referral partners in Oklahoma, Montana, South Dakota, North Carolina, and Nebraska. 

To download a copy of the paper, go to https://bit.ly/ONACecash.

On Friday, December 3, 2021, from 2:00 – 3:30 pm Eastern Time, ONAC and Native Americans in Philanthropy (NAP) are hosting a panel discussion for philanthropy on effective strategies for distributing emergency assistance to Native families. Foundations, grantmakers, other funders, and Native asset building practitioners are invited to join ONAC and NAP for a panel discussion about the value of intermediary funders and movement infrastructure, and the role partners can play in supporting Native communities. The discussion will feature Edgar Villanueva from the Decolonizing Wealth Project, Lisa Price from the Wells Fargo Foundation, and Christy Finsel from ONAC, and will be moderated by NAP’s CEO, Erik Stegman. 

To register for the event, go to https://nativephilanthropy.org/event/emergency-fund-distribution/. 

About the Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition Inc.: The Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition Inc. (ONAC), first organized in 2001 and a nonprofit since 2014, is a nationally-serving Native-led asset building coalition that acts as intermediary funder, direct service provider, and as a capacity builder (conducting national Native asset building research and providing training and technical assistance to tribes and Native-led nonprofits). ONAC’s mission is to build and support a network of Native people who are dedicated to increasing self-sufficiency and prosperity in their communities through the establishment of integrated culturally relevant financial education and financial coaching initiatives, as well as seed funded account programs, down payment assistance, free tax preparation, expanded banking access, and other asset-building strategies. For more information about the coalition, go to https://www.oknativeassets.org/. 

Here is a link to the slides for the presentation:ONAC and Native Americans in Philanthropy Co-Hosted Webinar to Promote ONAC's Release of the Paper: Distributing Emergency Cash Assistance to Native Families During a Pandemic.  

On October 28, 2021, ONAC is presenting information about national Native Child Tax Credit outreach during the HHS Region 1 Tribal quarterly meeting.

Agenda: ONAC presentation during the HHS Region 1 Tribal Quarterly Meeting and Child Tax Credit Discussion; ONAC presentation slides; and ONAC remarks.

We appreciate the opportunity to participate in the meeting. 

On October 25, 2021, Christy Finsel, ONAC Executive Director, presented information about ONAC's work during a Global Housing Foundation's conference, in celebration of United Nations Day.

The Global Housing Foundation, in Partnership with UN Habitat, hosted the conference, "The Future of Workforce Housing is Now: Innovative, Creative & Sustainable Solutions from Around the World".

ONAC, as an invited speaker, presented a micro-conference session entitled, "Innovations: Connecting Down Payment Assistance to Other Integrated Native Asset Building Programs."   

ONAC's remarks begin @ 2:04:55: https://globalhousing.net/unday2021/ 

Join us for a FDIC webinar on November 10, 2021. During the webinar, ONAC will discuss Native Bank On ONAC, messaging to the unbanked and underbanked, and the Get Banked Indian Country campaign. We will also hear from two financial institutions that have a Bank On certified account.

Agenda: Economic Inclusion for Native Americans: Access to Safe and Affordable Accounts.

Go here to register: https://web.cvent.com/event/ce080f6e-b407-4acf-a3da-3dd58ce78425/summary

Investing for the Future Zoom Train-the-Trainer Workshop

Back by popular demand, First Nations Development Institute, with support from the FINRA Investor Education Foundation and the Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition, Inc. (ONAC), is pleased to announce a virtual Investing for the Future Train-the-Trainer Workshop. This workshop is a three-day investor education certification workshop that offers in-depth instruction on the Investing for the Future curriculum, workbook, and related training materials. As part of the Building Native Communities curriculum series, Investing for the Future provides resources and tools for trainers to teach basic investing classes and workshops in an interactive virtual format. It's also a cutting-edge approach for introducing Native communities to concepts like stocks and bonds, planning for retirement, as well as using caution when considering risky trends like crowd investing, cryptocurrencies, and meme stocks. Space is limited, so reserve your spot now. For more information, please contact Shawn Spruce at agoyopi@gmail.com, or Christy Finsel, ONAC Executive Director, at cfinsel@oknativeassets.org. This training is available to trainers across the U.S. 

What: Investing for the Future Train-the-Trainer

When: November 8th-10th, 2021

Time: 10 am to 2 pm (MST) Daily

 

On October 14, 2021, the Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition, Inc. (ONAC) co-hosted a training with Code for America to provide information on how to help Native families claim their Child Tax Credit (CTC) and missing stimulus payments.

Why is ONAC interested in helping Native families claim their CTC? We care because the CTC helps reduce child poverty among Native children. (https://www.brookings.edu/blog/up-front/2021/03/11/new-child-tax-credit-could-slash-poverty-now-and-boost-social-mobility-later/).

Tribal governments and Native-led nonprofits may be interested in helping Native families claim their CTC and/or missing stimulus payments by directing them to the GetCTC.org non-filer tool. The GetCTC.org portal is open until November 15, 2021 (while the IRS non-filer portal closes October 15, 2021).

GetCTC.org is an IRS-approved official E-file provider. The portal was made in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Treasury and the White House, to try to help people claim the advance Child Tax Credit payments (https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy0322).

If you are interested in connecting tribal citizens to this portal, as a GetCTC.org navigator, we are sharing the following resources from the training:

· Recording of yesterday's presentation

· Presentation slides

· Navigator resource page: GetCTC.org/navigators

· Recommended outreach materials

o Social Press Kit's outreach toolkit

o Center on Budget and Policy Priorities toolkit

If those assisting with CTC navigator outreach have additional questions, they can join Code for America for their regularly scheduled Navigator Q&A session every other Friday from 2-3 pm ET. The next one is today, October 15th. They accept registrations to join up until the time the Q&A sessions begin. 

Tribal governments and Native-led nonprofits might be interested in tracking their CTC outreach by requesting an unique URL through GetCTC.org. It only takes a few minutes to complete the request for a unique URL. For those not interested in tracking their outreach, if you need a link, here is ONAC's URL: www.GetCTC.org/ONAC, or you may direct tribal citizens to www.GetCTC.org (with no outreach tracking). From ONAC's perspective, we are interested in getting the word out about the benefits of claiming the CTC, and in helping build the capacity of others interested in these time-sensitive outreach efforts. Thus, our interest in co-hosting the training yesterday to try to get as many Native navigators prepared to share information about the non-filer tool. Please know that you can help direct individuals to the portal even if you are not a tax preparer.

Having a checking or savings account will help Native families to gain a safe place to deposit their advance Child Tax Credit payments and missing stimulus payments. Attached is a flyer we generated this week, as part of the ONAC Get Banked Indian Country initiative, that provides information about the CTC and suggestions for opening a safe and affordable bank account.

Here is the contact information for our contact at Code for America, in case you have questions about GetCTC.org outreach:

Courtney O'Reilly, Navigator Program Manager, GetYourRefund

Coreilly@codeforamerica.org// c: 909.702.6555

Learn more about Code for America and GetYourRefund

If you need additional information from ONAC, please let us know.

The ONAC Team