Approximately 100,000 residents live in Cowlitz County in the Lower Columbia-Pacific Region of Washington State. This area was hit hard by an economic recession that followed on the heels of the region's decade-long transition from economic dependence on the logging and fishing industries to lower-paying jobs in the travel and tourism industry.
In an effort to meet the economic needs of the area, the Cowlitz Asset Building Coalition (CABC) was formed to implement a robust strategy driven to address the overall well being of low- and moderate-income families and individuals.
CABC is meeting this area’s economic development challenges through an array of programs, partnerships, and services designed to build knowledge, access tax credits for eligible individuals, increase competencies in financial literacy, improve credit standing, get employment training, and build assets.
Initiative Overview:
Bank on Cowlitz County brings together local resources to expand access to first time and second chance accounts to local low- and moderate-income residents, especially working families. The goal of the strategy is to assist the county’s unbanked and underbanked residents achieve greater economic prosperity by connecting them to financial mainstream services, products, and financial education.
This will be achieved through:
Promoting available no or low-cost financial services and products
Increasing the availability of financial education and credit counseling services to residents
Increasing community awareness of potential impacts of residents outside of the financial mainstream
Implementing a comprehensive outreach strategy for clients and resources
Involving the support of diverse partners, including financial institutions, workforce development agencies, social service, housing agencies, federal, state, and local government agencies, and free-tax preparation assistance sites
