Treasurer Garrity: Contribute to child’s savings account

The holiday season is in full swing, and for many that means pondering the perfect gift for a loved one. If you’re looking for something unique to give to a child in your life, I have a great option for you – something that will truly impact their life for years to come: A contribution to their PA 529 College and Career Savings Program account.

PA 529 accounts have been helping families save and pay for higher education for nearly three decades — it’s a tremendous savings tool, with great tax-saving benefits.

Anyone can open a PA 529 account for a child in their life and start saving for the future. There’s no minimum deposit to start an account, and future contributions can be as small as $1.

And if a child on your gift-giving list has a PA 529 account already, it’s easy to contribute. PA 529 account owners simply use the Ugift feature at pa529.com to create a unique code and then share it with family and friends who wish to contribute to a child’s education savings. Here’s another benefit – gift contributions to a PA 529 account are tax deductible, meaning tax savings for you as well.

When you make a Ugift contribution, you can download a certificate to give to the child. One fun way to present the gift to a child could be to wrap it up with a book about one of their favorite interests to help them learn now and later — what a nice way to support their interests today and years from now.

There are two PA 529 plans to choose from – the PA 529 Investment Plan and the PA 529 Guaranteed Savings Plan. The PA 529 IP offers a wide array of investment options where earnings are tied to financial markets, while the PA 529 GSP lets families save at specific credit rates to pay tomorrow’s tuition at today’s prices.

PA 529 plans let a child know that their family and friends believe in their future dreams, no matter what they want to be when they grow up.

For more information on how to give the gift of education and save with PA 529 and Ugift, visit pa529.com/ugift, call 800-440-4000 or email pa529@patreasury.gov

Pennsylvania Treasurer Stacy Garrity is tasked with protecting more than $150 billion in state assets. Among her responsibilities is overseeing savings programs, including the PA 529 College and Career Savings Program and PA ABLE. Learn more about the Pennsylvania Treasury Department at patreasury.gov.