For immediate release

The Federal Reserve Board today announced a new education resource designed to help consumers learn more about vehicle leasing. Keys to Vehicle Leasing: A Consumer Resource is a computer program that can be downloaded from the Federal Reserve Board's web site (www.federalreserve.gov/pubs/leasing) and used on home PCs. It answers the following questions in depth: How is leasing different from buying? What are the upfront, ongoing, and end-of-lease costs? How do you compare lease offers and negotiate lease terms? The program also includes information on the Consumer Leasing Act and its companion regulation (Regulation M and commentary), a comprehensive glossary, a leasing quiz, and frequently asked questions. To download Keys to Vehicle Leasing: A Consumer Resource to a home computer, consumers will need: a Windows 95, 98, NT or 2000 operating system (the program will not run on a Macintosh operating system), a level 486 processor or higher, 24 MB of free disk space on their hard drive, and Adobe Acrobat 3.0 or higher (for printing). The program takes about 25 minutes to download on a standard 56K modem. Once the program is downloaded, it is self-extracting. Assistance with the downloading process is available by using the feedback form on the Board's web site. Another new addition to the web site is a Guide for Educators, a slide presentation with explanatory notes for school and community educators. The web site also provides an overview of a closed-end lease, the most common type of vehicle lease used by the automotive industry, sample disclosure forms required in leasing transactions, and a glossary of terms used in leasing. Other government agencies and organizations taking part in the Keys to Vehicle Leasing educational effort are the American Financial Services Association and the AFSA Education Foundation, the Arizona Attorney General, the Association of Consumer Vehicle Lessors, the Cooperative Extension System, the Federal Trade Commission, the Florida Attorney General, the National Automobile Dealers Association, and the National Vehicle Leasing Association. The brochure Keys to Vehicle Leasing - A Consumer Guide is available in English and Spanish from the Federal Reserve Board's Publications Services, Mail Stop 127, Washington, DC 20551 (202-452-3244). The first 100 copies are free. It is also available on the Board's website: www.federalreserve.gov/pubs/leasing.

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