Lawmakers Require High School Students to Complete Personal Finance Course

It took them 20 years, but they finally got it done.

Last week, the Oregon Legislature passed SB 3, which requires students to complete semester-long courses in personal finance and college and career skills to graduate from high school.

The state’s credit unions have been working for almost two decades to bring this important life skill to students, the $2.1 billion Oregon State Credit Union in Corvallis said in a prepared statement.

According to Next Gen Personal Finance, a Palo Alto, Calif.-based financial education advocacy organization, 22 states passed laws to require high school students to complete a personal finance course, making Oregon the 23rd state to adopt such a mandate. In 2019, there were only six states that required high school students to complete a personal finance course, according to Next Gen Personal Finance.

“We are pleased the legislature recognized the importance of a robust financial education curriculum as part of the graduation requirements,” OSCU President/CEO Rick Hein said. “Our credit union and many others in the state have long dedicated resources to bring financial education to our students to help ‘fill the gap’ left by not having this critical course included in the graduation standards.”

SB 3 was sponsored by Senate Democrat President Rob Wagner and Senate Republican Leader Tim Knopp at the request of the Go West Credit Union Association. The original version of the bill, however, did not include a specific financial education curriculum or credit but was one of a number of life skills pieces that included resume writing and applying for college financial aid.

“At Oregon State Credit Union, we knew that was not good enough. Personal finance had to be a focused curriculum all its own,” Hein said.

Democrat Rep. Janelle Bynum had already introduced HB 3093 on behalf of OSCU, which carved out a specific half credit semester of personal finance and allows the Board of Education to apply the credit against the existing credits for mathematics.

Testimony given during committee hearings noted that several schools offered personal finance as an elective, and it was often taught by mathematics teachers who incorporated algebraic principles whenever possible in the instruction, according to OSCU.

That flexibility proved instrumental in getting support from school boards and administrators. SB 3 was then amended to include the key elements of HB 3093 and it received strong support, with overwhelming votes in the House, 24-1 and Senate, 42-7.

The bill now heads to Gov. Tina Kotek for her signature.

The new graduation requirement takes effect beginning with the class of 2027.