[BlindTlk] FW: SSI change that might be coming

Sun Oct 6 20:47:05 UTC 2019

I copied this right from the website, to which the link, I passed along leads to, however, none of the links are in this particular email message. You’ll have to go to the link I sent in my previous message to play the you tube message and go to the embedded links. 
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ABLE National Resource Center logo
About ABLE Accounts
Living with a disability is often associated with significant amounts of extra costs.
That’s why individuals and families can now contribute to ABLE accounts — tax-advantaged
savings accounts that can fund disability expenses.
Understanding ABLE
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Understanding ABLE
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10 THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW…
1
What is an ABLE account?
ABLE Accounts, which are tax-advantaged savings accounts for individuals with disabilities
and their families, were created as a result of the passage of the Stephen Beck Jr.
Achieving a Better Life Experience Act of 2014 or better known as the ABLE Act. The
beneficiary of the account is the account owner, and income earned by the accounts
will not be taxed. Contributions to the account, which can be made by any person
(the account beneficiary, family and friends), must be made using post-taxed dollars
and will not be tax deductible for purposes of federal taxes; however, some states
may allow for state income tax deductions for contributions made to an ABLE account.
2
Why the need for ABLE accounts?
Millions of individuals with disabilities and their families depend on a wide variety
of public benefits for income, health care and food and housing assistance. Eligibility
for these public benefits (SSI, SNAP, Medicaid) require meeting a means/resource
test that restricts eligibility to individuals who report more than $2,000 in cash
savings, retirement funds and other items of significant value. To remain eligible
for these public benefits, an individual must remain poor. For the first time in
public policy, the ABLE Act recognizes the extra and significant costs of living
with a disability. These include costs related to raising a child with significant
disabilities or a working-age adult with disabilities, accessible housing and transportation,
personal assistance services, assistive technology and health care not covered by
insurance, Medicaid or Medicare. For the first time, eligible individuals and their
families will be allowed to establish ABLE savings accounts that will largely not
affect their eligibility for SSI, Medicaid and other public benefits. The legislation
explains further that an ABLE account will, with private savings, “secure funding
for disability-related expenses on behalf of designated beneficiaries with disabilities
that will supplement, but not supplant, benefits provided through private insurance,
Medicaid, SSI, the beneficiary’s employment and other sources.”
3
Am I eligible for an ABLE account?
The ABLE Act limits eligibility to individuals with significant disabilities with
an age of onset of disability before turning 26 years of age. If you meet this age
requirement and are also receiving benefits under SSI and/or SSDI, you are automatically
eligible to establish an ABLE account. If you are not a recipient of SSI and/or SSDI
but still meet the age of onset disability requirement, you could still be eligible
to open an ABLE account if you meet Social Security’s definition and criteria regarding
significant functional limitations and receive a letter of certification from a licensed
physician. You do not have to be younger than 26 to be eligible for an ABLE account.
You can be over the age of 26 but must have had an age of onset before your 26th
birthday.
4
Are there limits to how much money can be put in an ABLE account?
The total annual contributions by all participating individuals, including family
and friends, for a single tax year is $15,000. The amount may be adjusted periodically
to account for inflation. Under current tax law, $15,000 is the maximum amount that
individuals can make as a gift to someone else and not report the gift to the IRS
(gift tax exclusion). The total limit over time that could be made to an ABLE account
will be subject to the individual state and their limit for education-related 529
savings accounts. States have set limits for total allowable ABLE savings. State
ABLE limits range from $100,000 to $529,000. In consideration of the annual contribution
limit per calendar year, accounts may reach the state limit over time. However, for
individuals with disabilities who are recipients of SSI, the ABLE Act sets some further
limitations. The first $100,000 in ABLE accounts would be exempted from the SSI $2,000
individual resource limit. If and when an ABLE account exceeds $100,000, the beneficiary’s
SSI cash benefit would be suspended until such time as the account falls back below
$100,000.  It is important to note that while the beneficiary’s eligibility for the
SSI cash benefit is suspended, this has no effect on their ability to receive or
be eligible to receive medical assistance through Medicaid. Additionally, upon the
death of the beneficiary, the state in which the beneficiary lived may file a claim
to all or a portion of the funds in the account equal to the amount in which the
state spent on the beneficiary through their state Medicaid program. This is commonly
known as the “Medicaid Payback” provision and the claim could recoup Medicaid-related
expenses from the time the account was open, subject to federal and state probate
laws.
5
Which expenses are allowed by ABLE accounts?
A “qualified disability expense” means any expense related to the designated beneficiary
as a result of living a life with disabilities. These may include education, housing,
transportation, employment training and support, assistive technology, personal support
services, health care expenses, financial management and administrative services
and other expenses which help improve health, independence, and/or quality of life.
6
Can I have more than one ABLE account?
The ABLE Act limits the opportunity to one ABLE account per eligible individual.
7
Do I have to wait for my state to establish a program before opening an account?
No. While the original law passed in 2014 did stipulate that an individual had to
open an account in their state of residency, this provision was eliminated by Congress
in 2015. This means that regardless of where you might live and whether or not your
state has decided to establish an ABLE program, you are free to enroll in any state’s
program provided that the program is accepting out-of-state residents. To determine
which state ABLE programs are accepting out-of-state programs, please refer to the
individual
state pages.
8
Will states offer options to invest the savings contributed to an ABLE account?
Like state 529 college savings plans, states do offer qualified individuals and families
multiple options to establish ABLE accounts with varied investment strategies. Each
individual has the opportunity to assess possible future needs and costs over time,
and to assess their risk tolerance for possible future investment strategies to grow
their savings. ABLE account owners are limited, by the ABLE Act, to change the way
their money is invested in the account up to two times per year.
9
How is an ABLE account different than a special needs or pooled trust?
An ABLE Account will provide more choice and control for the beneficiary and family.
Cost of establishing an account will likely be considerably less than either a Special
Needs Trust (SNT) or Pooled Income Trust. With an ABLE account, account owners will
have the ability to control their funds and, if circumstances change, still have
other options available to them. Determining which option is the most appropriate
will depend upon individual circumstances. For many families, the ABLE account will
be a significant and viable option in addition to, rather than instead of, a Trust
program. For more information, the webinar on
ABLE Accounts and Special Needs Trusts
is archived on our website along with its slides and transcript.
10
How will I know which state ABLE program is right for me?
As of January 2018, there were over 40 ABLE programs nationwide inviting eligible
individuals to open an ABLE account, most of which were enrolling individuals regardless
of their state of residence. When comparing State ABLE programs, you may want to
consider the following questions in order to find a program that best meets your
needs:
Opening an Account
– What proof will the ABLE program require for you to document in order to open
an account or show that your disbursements are qualified expenses? Is there a minimum
contribution to open an ABLE account? Is there a fee to open an account and, if so,
how much is that fee?
Maintaining the Account and Fees
– Is there a required minimum contribution to your account? If so, what is the amount?
Are the fees front-end loaded or are they reduced if you leave your funds invested
for several years? Are there restrictions on how often you can withdraw funds from
your account?
Investment Opportunities
– What are the investment options the state ABLE program offers? Are the options
likely to meet your needs for limiting risk with the growth of your contributed dollars
to the ABLE account? Does the program offer any unique or value-added program elements
to help you save, contribute to your account, grow the account and manage your invested
dollars? Does the state program offer any unique or value-added program elements
(such as a match or rewards program, financial literacy info or program for beneficiaries)
to help you save, contribute to your account, grow the account and manage your invested
dollars? If so, what is it?
Unique to Your State
– Does your state have a program and, if so, do they offer a state income tax for
contributions to their account? Is there a “debit card/purchasing card” available
with the program? Are there added costs to this?
For a more detailed understanding of how you can begin to compare programs and for
things to think about when preparing to open an ABLE account, visit
Becoming ABLE Ready.
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From: Pamela Dominguez via BlindTlk 
Sent: Sunday, October 06, 2019 6:46 AM
To: Blind Talk Mailing List 
Cc: Pamela Dominguez 
Subject: Re: [BlindTlk] FW: SSI change that might be coming

What do you mean by able savings accounts?  I have had a savings account for 
years.  Pam.

-----Original Message----- 
From: Vickie via BlindTlk
Sent: Saturday, October 05, 2019 11:46 PM
To: Blind Talk Mailing List
Cc: Vickie
Subject: Re: [BlindTlk] FW: SSI change that might be coming

Individuals on SSI are also permitted to open ABLE savings accounts now
https://www.ablenrc.org/what-is-able/what-are-able-acounts/
Inge Formenti

From: Eric Calhoun via BlindTlk
Sent: Friday, October 04, 2019 11:36 AM
To: blindtlk at nfbnet.org
Cc: Eric Calhoun
Subject: [BlindTlk] FW: SSI change that might be coming

Blindness-related.  What do you think?

Original Message:
From: Football john <johnsnflrox at gmail.com>
To: undisclosed-recipients: ;
Subject: SSI change that might be coming
Date:
Fri, 4 Oct 2019 13:10:43 -0400

SSI change that might be coming
A bill introduced in Congress would give more flexibility to people
receiving Supplemental Security Income benefits. (Disability Scoop)

People with disabilities who receive Supplemental Security Income would
be allowed to keep substantially more assets and would no longer be
penalized for
marrying under a new proposal.

Currently, in order to retain benefits, SSI recipients generally can
have no more than $2,000 to their name at any given time.

Lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives are looking to
significantly increase that ceiling, with a bill introduced this month
that would raise SSI's
asset limit to $10,000 for an individual and $20,000 for couples.

In addition, the Supplemental Security Income Restoration Act, or H.R.
4280, would increase the amount of disregarded income that beneficiaries
can take
in each month. And, the bill would repeal penalties for marrying or
receiving financial, food and housing assistance from family members.

Backers say the time has come to update Social Security's SSI program,
which has remained largely static since 1972.

"This issue is one I have heard about directly from autism advocates and
families in our district, particularly parents preparing for children
with disabilities
to transition into adulthood," said Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., who
introduced the measure along with Rep. Raúl Grijalva, D-Ariz. "This bill
brings the
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program's outdated limits up to speed
with inflation - a common-sense adjustment that will make a huge
difference for

individuals and families caring for someone with disabilities."

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