State’s ABLE Savings Plan a boost for people with disabilities
It allows people with disabilities to save up to
"People with disabilities who need to be on benefits are almost obligated to live a life of poverty. ABLE solves that," said
Previously, people with disabilities who received government benefits could own nothing worth more than a total of
The Stephen Beck Jr. ABLE -- or Achieving a Better Life Experience -- Act of 2014 allows people with disabilities to open tax-free savings accounts and keep their benefits. Twelve states are still developing ABLE plans.
Tassoni said some legislative inconsistencies at the state level delayed the launch of
Until
People with ABLE plans can get a prepaid card and use it for Starbucks, transportation, assistive technology, hiring an employment coach or going to the movies. Whatever the purchase is it has to be for the benefit of the beneficiary.
"You can use it for everyday expenses, your groceries, your rent," Tassoni said.
Having a prepaid card rather than a debit card is another security check; if the beneficiary loses their card, they won't be vulnerable to having all of the money in their account stolen.
People with any disability that qualifies for Supplemental Security Income or
"That's going to capture a lot of people in their early working years" who may get hurt on the job, Tassoni said.
Many of the people with an ABLE Savings Plan have a developmental or intellectual disability. Tassoni said about 45,000 state residents are registered with the
"As parents who have children with special needs, one of our biggest concerns is what will happen when we're not around?" said
She said families should look into the ABLE Savings Plan and the
"There are pluses and minuses to each of them," Helt said.
Local attorney
"Families need to have something for now and something for later," said Luchini, who primarily works with parents. "They worry, 'What's going to happen when we die?' ... After a long day of caring for a special needs child, it's a worry that keeps them up at night."
There are important differences between ABLE and the
"Both have great uses for families. It's fantastic that we now have ABLE accounts to add to our little basket of special needs planning options," Luchini said.
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