mr. speaker , i thank the gentleman for yielding me time .  mr. speaker , it is about great pleasure that i rise today to express my strong support for the bankruptcy abuse prevention and consumer protection act .  a chinese proverb says , give a man a fish and you feed him for a day .  teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime .  and that is exactly what this bill before us does today .  there are many reasons to support this bankruptcy reform bill , but i want to focus on one that is important to many of my colleagues , to me , and to the american people .  we should support the bill because it contains important financial literacy provisions .  financial literacy goes hand in hand with helping our citizens of all ages and walks of life to negotiate the complex world of personal finance .  financial literacy can help americans avoid or survive bankruptcy .  we pass many laws that require the disclosure of the terms and conditions of the rich mix of financial products and services that are available to consumers .  unfortunately for too many americans , knowing the terms and conditions of financial products and services is challenging enough .  however , understanding those terms and conditions is often an even greater challenge .  recognizing this fact , congress included provisions in the fair and accurate credit transactions act to address the issue of financial literacy .  the bankruptcy abuse prevention and consumer protection act also contains important provisions addressing economic education and financial literacy .  these provisions are designed to ensure that those who enter the bankruptcy system will learn the skills to more effectively manage their money in an increasingly complicated marketplace .  last week we passed house resolution 148 , a bill that supports the goals and ideals of financial literacy month , which is this month , april 2005 .  h. res. 148 was co-sponsored by 82 members of this body , and 409 members of this body voted for it .  mr. speaker , the number of bankruptcies remain at a historic high , over 1.6 million bankruptcy cases were filed in federal courts in 2004 .  with this in mind , i urge my colleagues to support this bill .  