Articles and CSF Mentions

NJ.com: If you used 529 plan to pay for college and got a refund, will it be taxed? CSF Chair Vivian Tsai answered questions from NJ.com/ The Star-Ledger in New Jersey, on college refunds on expenses paid from 529s.

May 4, 2020

Posted Apr 12, 2020 By Karin Price Mueller | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com When colleges across the country started to shut down their dorms and cafeterias because of the coronavirus outbreak, families received partial refunds for housing and meal plan costs. But what if you used a 529 plan to pay your college Continue Reading...

CNBC.com: How to avoid a tax problem if you get a refund from your college for spring semester. CSF was quoted in this story about college refunds when paid from 529s.

May 4, 2020

SMART TAX PLANNING How to avoid a tax problem if you get a refund from your college for spring semester PUBLISHED APR 30 2020 Jessica Dickler@JDICKLER If you got a refund from college for room and board or other expenses, consider yourself lucky. But beware of the potential tax bite. Continue Reading...

Forbes.com: Don’t Forget About Taxes If You’re Expecting A Refund Of College Tuition And Fees. CSF is cited in this column on how to process college refunds.

May 4, 2020

Kelly Phillips Erb Senior Contributor April 30, 2020 Every Friday evening, my husband's college friends have a Zoom happy hour: it's practicing social distancing and being social at the same time. The conversations have been dominated, of late, by the COVID-19 pandemic and how it's affecting our families. One popular Continue Reading...

Tribune News Service: Colleges plan refunds because campuses closed early. CSF was quoted in this syndicated story on 529 and college refunds.

May 4, 2020

By Steve Rosen Tribune News Service (TNS) Apr 20, 2020 Prepare to hit the reboot button on your 529 college savings account if it was tapped to pay for room, board and other costs this school year. That’s because many colleges and universities plan to offer full or partial refunds Continue Reading...

Families receiving refunds from colleges can redeposit money to 529 plans

April 24, 2020

TIM GRANT Pittsburgh Post-Gazette tgrant@post-gazette.com April 23: CSF Chair Vivian Tsai explained how families can redeposit funds received as higher-education refunds, into their 529 savings plans. Colleges and universities sometimes need to refund a portion of the money families pay for expenses due to problems such as a student deciding to Continue Reading...

Should college savers opt for student loans this fall?

April 24, 2020

By RYAN LANE of NerdWallet CSF Chair Vivian Tsai was quoted in this Associated Press story from Nerdwallet on how families can think about their 529 savings in fast-changing financial markets. In this June 20, 2019, file photo students walk around a RAMS sign at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Va. Continue Reading...

529 Gifting Plans Featured on KNX- AM Los Angeles Mottek on Money

December 28, 2019

CSF Chair Rich Polimeni told KNX-AM's Frank Mottek how families can contribute to a 529 Higher Education plans using a wide variety of gifting programs. https://we.tl/t-DSKMcrpbFi Continue Reading...

Survey: Parents with student debt are saving for college while their kids are still young

October 19, 2019

BILL SCHACKNERPittsburgh Post-Gazette September 19, 2019 A new national survey of parents eyeing college for their children is out, and two of the findings suggest that adults both recognize the importance of saving and are doing so while their kids are still young. One reason why that’s true might be Continue Reading...

Money Life with Chuck Jaffe

October 4, 2019

October 3 - Rich Polimeni shared the results of CSF's 13th Annual State of Savings survey of 1,000 parents, and helped listeners approach the challenge of saving for college: start early, take advantage of 529 college savings plans, and reduce your dependency on debt. Continue Reading...

Mottek on Money – KNX-AM

October 4, 2019

Los Angeles, September 28. CSF Chair Rich Polimeni told Frank Mottek what parents can do to save for and fund their children's education, to include information on the benefits of investing in 529 college savings plans. Continue Reading...

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Congress created 529 Education Savings Plans in 1996 under Section 529 of the Internal Revenue Code. They are state-sponsored, tax-advantaged vehicles for qualified post-secondary education expenses, such as tuition, fees, books, required supplies, equipment and room and board. There are two types of 529 Plans: savings plans, which allow families to save for expenses, and prepaid tuition programs, which generally allow families to make advance tuition payments to cover future attendance at a designated in-state public college or university system. Most states offer a 529 plan, and some states offer both savings and pre-paid plans.

A primary focus of CSF is building public awareness of and providing public policy support for 529 plans – an increasingly vital college-savings vehicle. CSF’s members include investment managers, broker-dealers, governmental bodies, law firms, accounting and consulting firms, and non-profit agencies that participate in the sponsorship or administration of 529 college savings plans.

College Savings Foundation
1300 Piccard Drive Suite LL14
Rockville, MD 20850
240.404.6478

Email: jdisanza@collegesavingsfoundation.org

PRESERVING, ENHANCING 529 PLANS
CSF’s key program goals are specifically focused on promotion, protection and enhancement of 529 plans.

A FORUM FOR DISCUSSION AND ACTION:
CSF brings together the industry and consumers on policy questions and provides a means for unified action on issues of concern to 529 plan investors and the industry. CSF provides a framework to assist with the orderly development of the programs and, in particular, acts as a resource for policymakers who share CSF’s objective of helping families realize their educational goals.

Tax Benefits

Investments grow on a tax-deferred basis, and earnings are free of federal income tax.
Contributions are eligible for gift tax exclusion as long as certain conditions are met.
Generally, account owners can remove contributions and future earnings from their taxable estate.
Certain 529 plans offer some type of state tax deduction when residents invest in their own state’s plan.

Flexibility

There are currently no income limits. Any U.S. resident or citizen, regardless of income, can open an account.
Account owners can withdraw money at anytime.
Funds may be used to pay qualified education expenses at any qualified educational institution in the U.S. (and some schools abroad), including any accredited public or private college or university, graduate school, two-year community or junior college and vocational and technical schools.
Eligible educational institutions include most U.S. schools and some schools located abroad. The institution must be eligible to participate in the U.S. Department of Education student aid programs. To determine if a school is an eligible education institution, search for its federal school code at www.fafsa.ed.gov.
Most plans offer low initial investments and a variety of investment options fitting various levels of risk and time horizons.

Control

The account owner decides when and how money in the account is withdrawn.
Account owners can change beneficiaries and investment options, according to IRS guidelines.

Start planning for your child’s future today!