Booker, Big Brothers Big Sisters, and Invest America Host New Jersey Community Launch Event for Children’s Investment Accounts

NEWARK, NJ - Today, U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) joined Big Brothers Big Sisters of Essex, Hudson & Union Counties CEO Carlos Lejnieks and Invest America founder Brad Gerstner for a community celebration marking the launch of children's investment accounts - also known as Trump Accounts - a transformational national initiative designed to help families build long-term financial security for children across America.

These accounts, building on proposals including Senator Booker's American Opportunity Accounts Act - known as "Baby Bonds" - are private, tax-advantaged, interest-bearing savings accounts available to every American child at birth. Each account is seeded with a $1,000 federal investment and can grow through contributions from family, friends, philanthropists, and employers who want to invest in the futures of their employees' children. The accounts officially go live on July 4.

"Today marks the beginning of a new generation of American children growing up with a stronger foundation to redeem the American Dream," said Booker. "I have fought for this idea for years, because it is the kind of big, bold idea that will have a tangible and transformational impact on our country. There are children born today, like those in the neighborhood where I live in Newark, whose parents work hard every single day but have never had the chance to build generational wealth. With a children's investment savings account, seeded with $1,000, those kids will have something that grows with them from birth, putting them on a path toward wealth-building that can help them afford college, open a small business, or buy their first home. When we invest in our children, we affirm their worth, we honor their dreams, and we declare that opportunity should never depend on the ZIP code you're born into or the wealth your family inherited."

"This is such an important policy conversation to have with the families in our communities, not only to spread awareness of the opportunity but as encouragement that there can be a path to college, no matter your situation," said Carlos Lejnieks, CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Essex, Hudson & Union Counties. "We are honored to partner with Senator Booker to get the word out and for his longtime support of our mentoring mission."

"Senator Booker has long understood and fought for children's investment accounts and was an early supporter of the Invest America Act,"said Brad Gerstner, Founder of Invest America. "On July 4, every child born forevermore will get a Trump Account with a $1,000 free lifetime investment account. There are 1.1 million kids under 10 in New Jersey eligible to claim their account right now with at least $250 in the account. Claiming the account automatically makes each child a shareholder in the S&P 500 - companies like Apple, Walmart & Nvidia. With simple savings and compounding, the accounts can be worth $50,000 at 18, $200,000 at age 30."

Senator Booker has long championed Baby Bonds as a transformational tool to close the racial wealth gap and make economic opportunity a birthright for every American child. He first introduced the American Opportunity Accounts Act in 2018 and has pushed for its implementation throughout his time in the Senate. In December 2025, Booker and Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) sent a letter to Fortune 1000 CEOs urging them to support child investment accounts.

At today's event, parents and families received step-by-step guidance on how to enroll and activate their children's accounts. Leaders underscored the urgency of the moment: billions of dollars from the federal government and philanthropists are now available to families upon enrollment. Youth and community partners joined Senator Booker and Brad Gerstner for a conversation about how this program represents one of the most significant investments in children's futures in U.S. history.