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Monday, January 30, 2012

Helping Young People Understand Finance

On Saturday I had a chance to go over to Howard Community College to see an event that makingChange and Junior Achievement sponsored for young people to understand the financial decisions families make every month in developing a budget. Every young person was given a scenario that told them what monthly income they had and information about their family.  They then had to visit each of the tables that represented another monthly expense such as housing, entertainment, cable, savings, food, clothing and even philanthropy.  They had a range that they could choose to select how much they wanted to spend on that expense.  What most people found out was how limited their choices were on the incomes they had.  They could clearly see what a luxury it was to have parents paying for most of their essentials and how they spent most of their money on items that really are luxuries.   What you need and what you want become clearer.

Below is the case scenario I was given:
Your Life Situation Credit Analyst
Age: 25
Married: No
Ages of Children: N/A
Career Cluster
Business Management & Finance
Education Background/Cost
I am a graduate of a North High School, which cost nothing to attend. I also earned a bachelor's degree in accounting, which cost $23,456 with a partial scholarship.
Employment Background
During summers in high school and college, I answered phones for a local credit bureau. I found analyzing finances to be interesting and realized I wanted to work in this kind of environment. A friend told me about the job I now have.
Education/Employment Objective
I love working in my company's underwriting department, making decisions, reviewing credit information, and approving loans for customers and businesses. Since I am in such a competitive field, I plan to take evening classes to begin working on my master's degree.
Gross Annual Income (GAI)      $41,316
Gross Monthly Income (GMI)   $ 3,443
(GAI divided by 12 months= GMI)
Federal Taxes
Monthly Federal Income Tax  $ 112
Monthly Social Security Tax $   91
Monthly Medicare Tax           $  51
Total Monthly Federal Taxes  $ 254
Net Monthly Income Calculation
Gross Monthly Income         $ 3,443
Monthly Federal Taxes           $  254
Net Monthly Income (NMI)=  $3,189
After paying off student loans, rent, car payment and food I didn't have a lot to spare for much else.

P.S.
After more than a year, the draft Aquatics Master Plan is ready for public review. The community is encouraged to attend a public meeting/work session on the draft plan on Tuesday, January 31st, 7:00PM at Claret Hall in the River Hill Village Center. This meeting is hosted by the CA Board of Directors Planning and Strategy Committee. There will be a brief presentation by CA staff, remarks by the Chair of the Aquatics Master Plan Task Force and then then time for resident speak-out followed by Board discussion.

While registration is not required, it is appreciated. Please visit http://draft-aqua-plan-review.eventbrite.com/ to register for this event. For more information on this project, please visit ColumbiaAssociation.org/AquaticsMasterPlan.

P.S. 2
Is Fracking in Maryland's Future?

TOWN HALL MEETING

Tuesday, January 31, 7 p.m.

East Columbia Library

6600 Cradlerock Way, Columbia


Maryland is studying whether to allow hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, to extract natural gas. 

The public is invited to join experts on natural gas issues for a town hall meeting to discuss environmental concerns, economic impacts and more.
Panelists are:

• Maryland Delegate Heather Mizeur, sponsor of the Marcellus Shale Safe Drilling Act

• Mike Tidwell, Director of the Chesapeake Climate Action Network

• Harry Weiss, a member of the state panel studying natural gas drilling and an attorney with Ballard Spahr who has represented both landowners and oil and gas companies in Pennsylvania.

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