Woodstock Institute

Technical assistance/Small business

Wealth creation and preservation: Woodstock uses innovative research to identify barriers to and opportunities for wealth creation for low-wealth persons and communities, and engages in coalition building and advocacy to expand policies that promote equitable wealth creation. For example, Woodstock conducted research on the extent of retirement security in Illinois and collaborated with the Illinois asset building group to persuade Illinois to create a first-ever state program for employment-based retirement savings plans to save through automatic enrollment and payroll deduction into a Roth IRA, with the ability to opt out.

Equitable lending & investment: Woodstock produces research on the often predatory and disproportionate impact of financial products and practices on low-wage workers, low-wealth people and communities of color, develops model reforms, and advocates with regional stakeholders for consumer protections and fair rates for mortgage and consumer credit. For example, Woodstock played a critical leadership role in eliminating many of the short-term credit industry's worst practices in Illinois with the passage of HB537, which included all of the key consumer protections identified in Woodstock's substantial body of consumer credit research. That law caps rates for short-term credit products, prevents the cycle of debt caused by frequent refinancing, and gives regulators the tools necessary to identify predatory practices before they become widespread. At the federal level, Woodstock works to ensure that the lending and consumer laws and rules apply to the widest possible range of products and effectively protect consumers, low-wage workers and small business owners before industry abuses become widespread. Woodstock's goals are to reduce the number of consumers using predatory credit products and the level of debt held by low-wealth people, and to help lower-wealth people and communities of color build and preserve wealth.