Montana Legal Services Association BSAFE Program

This year Montana Legal Services Association (MLSA) will develop an Individual Development Account (IDA) program to serve domestic violence survivors in Helena and its surrounding communities. This program will be called Building Security through Assets and Financial Education, or BSAFE. The BSAFE Program will be designed and implemented utilizing one AmeriCorps*VISTA leader part-time and one-full time VISTA. IDA programs are a progressive new welfare policy based on a philosophy that takes asset-based poverty, in addition to income-based poverty, into account when designing a system of aid for those in need. (For more information on IDA programs, please see www.idanetwork.org.)

Domestic violence survivors are often unbanked, meaning they have little or no formal financial history. IDA programs, as a welfare philosophy, are designed to change behavior as well as mentality. Women who have been dependent on their abusers often lack the financial know-how to build assets, but not necessarily the capacity. This is an important distinction to make in a dialogue concerning a survivor's chance of becoming financially independent. With the proper opportunity for education, support for making progressive financial changes and welfare in the form of matching funds, participants can potentially build assets, save for their future and break the cycle of dependence. Asset building does not fall directly under MLSA's mission of providing low-income people with access to the justice system; however, the goals and purposes of an IDA program do fall in line with this organization's hope to empower client self-reliance and future problem solving skills. MLSA has a history of providing services to domestic violence survivors, with the specially-focused Domestic Violence Unit, the distribution of "Domestic Violence and the Law in Montana" guidebook and its large volume of domestic violence clients.

MLSA has fostered working relationships with The Montana Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence, the Career Training Institute, The Montana Credit Union Network, Consumer Credit Counseling Services, the Rocky Mountain Development Council, Working for Equality and Economic Liberation (WEEL) and The Friendship Center. Members of the first four organizations sit on the Advisory Council, in addition to Helena's sole provider of first-time homebuyer's classes and Alison Paul (MLSA Deputy Director of Grants and Administration) and Tara Veazey (MLSA Self-Help Law Project). This Advisory Council meets once every six weeks to discuss program design questions, funding issues and long-term planning.

BSAFE program will be modeled after two existing programs in Montana. These programs are at HomeWORD (Missoula) and the Human Resource Development Council (Billings), both asset development organizations, as well as one other domestic violence-specific program in St. Louis. These programs are designed in a way that is unique to the goals and client-base of their organizations. In addition to the Advisory Council, MLSA has also conferred with a focus group of potential participants to decide on a program design.