Smart Money Week kicks off in Indiana

FORT WAYNE, IND. (WANE) - The state is trying to get the ball rolling on a program to help you make the most of this bad economy. October 12-18 is Money Smart Week in Indiana.

"What it's offering this year is over 200 free programs around this area and throughout the state,” said Indiana Secretary of State Todd Rokita.

This is the 4th year for the event, which is designed to help you when it comes to things like saving, spending, and investing habits.

This year, it comes at a time when more Americans are holding on to their cash.

"We've gone the last few years from a negative savings rate as individuals across the country from -2% to 5 to 7%. Now I think we're doing most of that out of fear, unfortunately, because of the bad economy. But if we can change the culture, we can do it out of habit," Rokita said.

He says the program isn't geared to offer financial advice, but rather to offer tips on how to invest wisely.

"Our first goal has got to be to stop Hoosiers from wrongly getting separated from their hard earned money in the first place. And so at these seminars you'll also learn how you can invest wisely and where you can go to get information about the person trying to sell you a product," Rokita said.

You can find out more about the events by click here. You can also call 1-800-223-8791.

The program isn’t paid for by settlements the state has collected from security fraud cases, and not tax dollars.