U.S. Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) recently introduced legislation that seeks to help parents nationwide with efforts to save for college.
The Helping Parents Save for College Act encourages families to invest in a 529 education savings account to pay for a two- or four-year college education or vocational school.
“Education plays a vital role in opening the doors of opportunity to all Americans, but the rising cost of a college education threatens to close those doors to many families across the country,” Collins said, noting 529 plans serve as a viable option for parents to save for college expenses. “But uncertainty about whether their children will choose to pursue post-secondary education years in the future can be a deterrent to opening and investing in an account. Our bipartisan bill would address this barrier by improving the flexibility of 529 plans for low- and middle-income households, helping more parents to financially prepare and more children to achieve their dreams.”
The bill would also provide tax cuts for families who save for college and enable families to roll unused college savings into a child’s retirement account.
“The high cost of higher education is hurting families’ bottom lines and standing in the way of students’ success,” Hassan said. “That’s why Sen. Collins and I introduced bipartisan legislation that takes commonsense steps to make it easier for families to save for their child’s education, including by cutting taxes for families who put away money for college. I urge my colleagues to join us in supporting this bill that will help ease the cost of higher education, strengthen our economy, and enable more young people to gain the skills that they need to thrive.”