Mayor O'Connell establishes Mayor's Office of Financial Empowerment to support affordability, improved quality of life priorities

Today, Mayor Freddie O'Connell announced the establishment of a Mayor's Office of Financial Empowerment (OFE), enabled by a grant from the national nonprofit organization Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund (CFE Fund). The Mayor's OFE and its soon-to-be-hired manager will lead collaborative work to improve quality of life and make it easier to live in Nashville by elevating services like financial counseling, finding opportunities to build wealth, and access to reasonably priced banking options.

"We're focused on the key priorities of improved quality of life and affordability for all our residents, and the Office of Financial Empowerment is an important component, giving residents tools to thrive in Nashville's growing economy," Mayor O'Connell said. "This office will work collaboratively with our Financial Empowerment Center, nonprofit community, banks, and funders to advance economic growth and fairness for all Nashvillians, lower poverty, and bridge the gap between financial services and the people who can benefit from them the most."

The Metro Council is scheduled to vote to accept the grant from the CFE Fund on Tuesday evening.

Council member Kyonzté Toombs, Vice Chair of the Budget and Finance Committee, added, "Helping our residents establish strong financial practices helps them reduce debt, increase household savings, and live financially stable lives, especially our young people, families and older adults. Getting tools like one-on-one financial counseling and banking into the hands of more residents is invaluable."

The Office of Financial Empowerment will benefit all Nashvillians with an emphasis on the groups that often face the most socioeconomic uncertainty - such as young individuals, retirees, and low-income families. The OFE will also look for opportunities to embed financial empowerment efforts within Metro Nashville programs and policies.

"Local governments have a critical role to play in building residents' financial stability," said Jonathan Mintz, President and CEO of the Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund. "An Office of Financial Empowerment, with dedicated leadership, is more than the sum of important individual programs - it's a catalyst for truly embedding financial empowerment work across government. The Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund congratulates Nashville on this strong commitment and is thrilled to partner with Mayor O'Connell and his team to launch this new Office."

The Mayor's Office applied for the two-year Financial Empowerment Cities grant from the CFE Fund, and the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee will provide matching funds, bringing the total capital received to just over $280,000.

The office will complement the work done by the already operational Financial Empowerment Center which offers financial counseling to any Nashvillian. The center is a partnership between the Mayor's Office and United Way. Nashvillians can view FEC offerings through the United Way of Greater Nashville's website.