ERIE, PA — Pennsylvania’s PA ABLE savings program for people with disabilities has surpassed $200 million in assets, state officials announced Friday, marking continued growth in a program designed to help residents save money without losing access to critical public benefits.
What This Means for You
- Pennsylvanians with disabilities have saved more than $200 million through the PA ABLE program.
- Savings in PA ABLE accounts do not affect eligibility for benefits such as Supplemental Security Income or Medicaid.
- Some employers can offer PA ABLE accounts as a workplace benefit and may qualify for state tax credits.
State Treasurer Stacy Garrity highlighted the milestone during a visit to Community Resources for Independence in Erie, where officials also announced that the nonprofit organization will begin offering PA ABLE accounts as an employee benefit.
PA ABLE—short for Achieving a Better Life Experience—is a tax-advantaged savings program that allows individuals with disabilities and their families to save money for expenses such as housing, food, healthcare, education, and transportation without jeopardizing eligibility for federal benefits like Supplemental Security Income and Medicaid.
“PA ABLE continues to give Pennsylvanians with disabilities greater opportunities to save and plan for the future,” Garrity said. “I’m thrilled that PA ABLE account owners have over $200 million saved for the future.”
Employer Participation Expands
Community Resources for Independence, a nonprofit that provides advocacy and services to help individuals with disabilities live independently, will begin offering PA ABLE as a workplace benefit for employees.
CRI Executive Director Carl Berry said the organization believes the program will help employees and their families better prepare for disability-related expenses.
“Many of CRI’s employees are people with disabilities or have family members with disabilities,” Berry said. “The PA-ABLE account is an advantageous opportunity to save money for a wide range of disability-related expenses.”
State officials said employers that make matching contributions to employee PA ABLE accounts may qualify for a Pennsylvania tax credit equal to 25 percent of their matching contributions, up to $500 per employee per tax year.
Program Background
The federal ABLE Act, passed in 2014, allowed states to create tax-advantaged savings programs for individuals with disabilities.
Pennsylvania launched the PA ABLE program in 2017 following legislation championed by Sen. Lisa Baker.
“We started the PA ABLE program with the purpose of giving families with a member with disabilities an opportunity to improve their circumstances by saving for the future,” Baker said.
Growth of the Program
PA ABLE is now the fifth-largest ABLE program in the country, serving more than 12,000 account owners.
Account holders have withdrawn more than $76 million over the life of the program to pay for qualified disability-related expenses, including housing, groceries, healthcare, education, transportation, and assistive technology.
Participants may contribute up to $20,000 annually to an account, with higher limits available for some employed individuals. Contributions of up to $19,000 are deductible from Pennsylvania state income taxes, and earnings grow tax-free when used for qualified expenses.
Officials said federal changes taking effect in January expanded eligibility for the program by increasing the age at which a qualifying disability must begin from before age 26 to before age 46.
More information about the program and eligibility requirements is available at https://paable.gov.
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