Our top policy priority is to expand the scope and impact of the federal Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program – both in its current form, and by testing whether automatically enrolling eligible families in FSS (while letting them opt out anytime) could help the program reach more of the 2.2 million families who could benefit from it.

We also support other programs that help families with low incomes build wealth, improve public benefits, and deliver reparations for descendants of enslaved Africans in America.

Compass Working Capital is excited to announce the reintroduction of the Helping More Families Save Act (S.970) in the 119th Congress. In conjunction with the reintroduction, we are launching a sign-on campaign for organizations to endorse the bill and ensure that the Helping More Families Save Act is passed into law.

Please join our coalition of supporters working to expand economic opportunity by pledging your support through this link.

The bill, introduced by Senators Katie Britt (R-AL) and Jack Reed (D-RI) and cosponsored by Senators Tina Smith (D-MN) and Mark Warner (D-VA), would authorize HUD to implement a large-scale, multi-year demonstration testing an innovative opt-out approach to the Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program. The demonstration would operate across multiple sites nationwide, serving up to 5,000 HUD-assisted households. This expanded pilot builds on promising evidence from earlier, smaller-scale demonstrations and would provide robust data on the effectiveness of the opt-out model in diverse housing markets and communities.

From 2016 to 2019, Compass Working Capital (“Compass”) partnered with the Cambridge Housing Authority and Abt Associates to pilot an innovative "opt-out" approach to FSS at two Cambridge public housing developments. The Rent-to-Save pilot demonstrated that combining automatic enrollment with financial coaching can dramatically increase participation. 

The national pilot authorized by the bill would allow Compass to test the opt-out approach at a larger scale than the previously conducted pilot. 

Key Features of the Demonstration:

• Streamlined graduation requirements focusing on employment
• Voluntary participation with ability to opt-out at any time
• Access to supportive services like financial coaching (strongly encouraged but not required)
• Funded through a combination of private philanthropy and modest federal support for technical assistance and implementation

Please join our coalition of supporters working to expand economic opportunity by pledging your support: