How Will Investment in the Plan Affect My Designated Beneficiary’s Chances of Receiving Financial Aid?
The eligibility of the Designated Beneficiary for financial aid may depend upon the circumstances of the Designated Beneficiary’s family at the time the Designated Beneficiary enrolls in an Institution of Higher Education, as well as on the policies of the governmental agencies, school, or private organizations to which the Designated Beneficiary and/or the Designated Beneficiary’s family applies for financial assistance. These policies vary at different institutions and can change over time. Therefore, no person or entity can say with certainty how the federal aid programs, or the school to which the Designated Beneficiary applies, will treat your Account for purposes of receiving finan- cial aid. Discuss this with school officials at the institutions to which your Designated Beneficiary applies.
Are Contributions Part of an Account Owner’s Bankruptcy Estate? The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 protects many Section 529 accounts in federal bankruptcy proceedings subject to certain limits. Your Account will be protected if the Designated Beneficiary is your child, stepchild, grandchild, or stepgrandchild (including a child, step- child, grandchild, or stepgrandchild through adoption or foster care) subject to the following limits:
• Contributions made to all Section 529 accounts for the same Designated Beneficiary at least 720 days before a federal bankruptcy filing are completely protected; • Contributions made to all Section 529 accounts for the
same Designated Beneficiary more than 365 days, but less than 720 days before a federal bankruptcy filing are protected up to $6,225; and
• Contributions made to all Section 529 accounts for the same Designated Beneficiary less than 365 days before a federal bankruptcy filing are not protected against creditor claims in federal bankruptcy proceedings. Your own state law may offer additional creditor protections. You should consult your legal advisor regarding the effect of any bankruptcy filing on your Account.
Does Alabama Law Protect Accounts From Creditors? No.
What Kind of Statements Will I Receive? You will receive quarterly statements showing:
• Contributions made to the Account for that period; • Change in Account value for the period;
• Withdrawals made from the Account for that period; • Account fee paid during the period;
• The total value of the Account at the end of that time period; and
• Information concerning the Maximum Account Balance Limitation.
Carefully review all confirmations and account statements to verify the accuracy of the transactions. Any discrepancies must be reported to the Program Manager within 30 days of the date of the confirmation or statement, whichever is earliest to occur. If you fail to notify us of any error, you will be considered to have approved the transaction.
To reduce the amount of duplicate mail that is sent to a household, the Program Manager will combine Account statements that have the same Account Owner and mailing address in the same mailing. The Program Manager will send one copy of the Program Disclosure Statement and other Plan communications to Account Owners at each respective household address. The Plan periodically matches and updates addresses of record against the U.S. Postal Service’s change of address database to minimize undeliverable items.
You can view quarterly statements online at CollegeCounts529.com. To do so, you will need to create an online user name and password and provide additional identifying information to establish your online account.
Information including prospectuses and other disclosures of all fees and expenses associated with mutual funds and other investments made by the Program is available at CollegeCounts529.com.
How Can I Have Online Access to My Account?
You can access information about your Account 24 hours a day by logging in to your Account at CollegeCounts529.com. You will need to select a user name and password and follow the online steps. The Program Manager employs procedures it considers to be reasonable to confirm that instructions communicated by internet are genuine, including certain identifying information prior to acting upon internet instructions. None of the Program Manager, the Board, or the Treasurer will be liable for follow- ing internet instructions that the Program Manager reasonably believed to be genuine. To safeguard your Account, please keep your information confidential.
Is the Program Audited?
Each year an independent public accountant selected by the Program Manager will audit the Plan. The auditors will examine financial statements for the Plan and provide other audit, tax, and related services. The Board may also conduct audits of the Program and the Trust. The Plan’s audited financial statements are available online at CollegeCounts529.com.
Where Can I Obtain Additional Information?
To obtain answers to your questions or request an Enrollment Form, please visit CollegeCounts529.com, call 866.529.2228 or write to CollegeCounts 529 Fund, P.O. Box 85290, Lincoln, NE 68501-5290.
In order to comply with Rule 15c 2-12(b)(5) promulgated in the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, (herein referred to as the “Rule”), the Board, on behalf of the Plan, has entered into a continuing disclosure agreement for the benefit of the Account Owners. Under the continuing disclosure agreement, the Board, on the Plan’s behalf as permitted by law, will in com- pliance with the Rule provide the Plan’s annual audited financial statement when available in conformity with the Rule and will provide notices of the occurrence of certain material events under the Rule and the continuing disclosure agreement, when applicable to the Plan. The Plan’s audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2014 have been posted with the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board.