Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 3, March 20, 2024
A. A
START K12 Program account is established on behalf of a designated beneficiary
to provide the funding for tuition necessary for the beneficiary to attend
public or private school for any of kindergarten through twelfth grade.
1. The account owner classified under §711.A
1, 2, 3, and 4 shall designate the beneficiary in the owner's
agreement.
2. The account owner
classified under §711.A.5 may designate the beneficiary in the owner's
agreement, provided the beneficiary is not a member of the account owner's
family, or authorize the LATTA to select a beneficiary for the
account.
3. A beneficiary selected
by the LATTA must meet the following criteria:
a. the beneficiary is a Louisiana
resident;
b. the federal adjusted
income of the beneficiary's family is less than $30,000 or the beneficiary is
eligible for a free lunch under the Richard B. Russell National School Act (
42 USC
1751 et seq.);
c. the beneficiary is not a member of the
account owner's family nor a member of the family of any member or employee of
the authority or LOSFA;
4. Procedure for Selection
(Reserved)
B. Program
Enrollment Period. An account may be opened and an eligible beneficiary may be
enrolled at any time during the calendar year.
C. Completing the Owner's Agreement
1. This agreement must be completed in full
by the account owner.
2. The
account owner shall designate a beneficiary, except as provided in Paragraph
A.2 above.
3. The account owner may
designate a limited power of attorney to another person who would be authorized
to act on the account owner's behalf, in the event the account owner becomes
incapacitated.
4. Transfer of
account ownership is only permitted as set forth in §719
D. Agreement to Terms. Upon executing an
owner's agreement, the account owner agrees to the following statements.
1. Admission to a particular eligible
educational institution-that participation in the START K12 Program does not
guarantee that a beneficiary will be admitted to the beneficiarys eligible
educational institution of choice.
2. Payment of Qualified Education
Expenses-that no more than $10,000 may be withdrawn from a START K12 account
annually and that this amount is not guaranteed to pay all qualified education
expenses.
3. Maintenance of
Continuous Enrollment-that once admitted to an eligible educational
institution, participation in the START K12 Program does not guarantee that the
beneficiary will be permitted to remain at the school throughout the
beneficiarys kindergarten through twelfth grade education.
4. Guarantee of Redemption Value-that the
LATTA does not guarantee the value of a START K12 Account that is invested in
variable earnings.
5. Conditions
for Payment of Qualified Education Expenses-that payments for qualified
education expenses under the START K12 Program are conditional upon the
beneficiary's enrollment at an eligible educational institution.
6. Fees
a.
That fees imposed by investment institutions for opening or maintenance of
variable earnings accounts may be charged to the account owner.
b. That financial and investment institutions
may be authorized by the LATTA to offer prospective owners information and
assistance in opening a START K12 account.
7. That an account whose owner is a legal
entity or is classified under §711.A.5 cannot be terminated and the funds
deposited in the account will not be refunded to the account owner.
8. That an account owner who is a legal
entity or is classified under §711.A 5, can change the beneficiary of an
account to one or more persons who are not members of the family of the
beneficiary in accordance with §719.A.3 b, however, in such case:
a. these transfers may be treated as refunds
under federal and state tax laws in which case the account owner will be
subject to any associated tax consequences; and
b. the provisions of §709.A.2 shall apply to
account owners classified in accordance with §711.A 5
9. Only the account owner or the beneficiary
may be designated to receive refunds from the account owned by an account owner
who is a natural person other than a natural person classified as an account
owner under §711.A.5 In the event of the death of the account owner when the
account owner is designated to receive the refund and there is no substitute
account owner named, the refund shall be made to the account owner's
estate.
10. That in the event an
account owner who is a legal entity classified as an account owner under
§711.A.3 is dissolved, the beneficiary will become the owner of the
account.
11. No refunds shall be
paid to account owner classified under §711.A.5 If such an account is
terminated by the LATTA in accordance with §717 E, the beneficiary shall become
the owner of the account, provided that, all the rights and restrictions
provided in law and these rules regarding account owners classified under
§711.A 5, including, but not limited to, use of the funds, refunds,
terminations, designation of beneficiary, etc., shall be applicable to the
beneficiary that becomes the owner of such an account. If an account owner
classified under §711.A.5 dies or is dissolved and the beneficiary has died or
failed to graduate high school by age 21, and no substitute beneficiary has
been designated by the account owner, the authority shall designate a new
beneficiary who must meet the requirements of §709.A.3 and §711.A 5
E. Acceptance of the Owner's
Agreement
1. A properly completed and
submitted owner's agreement will be accepted upon receipt.
2. Upon acceptance of the owner's agreement,
the LATTA will establish the account of the named beneficiary.
F. Citizenship Requirements. Both
an account owner who is not a legal entity and the beneficiary must meet the
following citizenship requirements:
1. be a
United States citizen; or
2. be a
permanent resident of the United States as defined by the U.S. Citizenship and
Immigration Services (USCIS) or its successor and provide copies of USCIS
documentation with the submission of the owner's agreement; or
3. be lawfully residing in the United States
and have a valid Social Security number.
G. Residency Requirements
1. On the date an account is opened, either
the account owner or his designated beneficiary must be a Louisiana
resident, as defined in §707 of these rules.
2. The LATTA may request documentation to
clarify circumstances and formulate a decision that considers all facts
relevant to residency.
H. Providing Personal Information
1. The account owner is required to disclose
personal information in the owner's agreement, including:
a. his Social Security number;
b. the designated beneficiary's Social
Security number;
c. the
beneficiary's date of birth;
d. the
familial relationship between the account owner and the designated beneficiary,
if any;
e. the account owner's
prior year's federal adjusted gross income as reported to the Internal Revenue
Service; and
f. in the case of an
account owner classified under §711.A 5:
i.
the Social Security number of the beneficiary's family and authorization from
that person for the LATTA to access his annual tax records through the
Louisiana Department of Revenue, for the purpose of verifying federal adjusted
gross income; and
ii. if
applicable, proof that the beneficiary is a ward of the court; or
iii. if applicable, proof the beneficiary is
eligible for a free lunch under the Richard B. Russell National School Act (
42 USC
1751 et seq.).
2. By signing the owner's
agreement, the account owner who is classified under §711.A.1 (does not include
legal entities or other persons classified as account owners under §711.A.5
provides written authorization for the LATTA to access his annual tax records
through the Louisiana Department of Revenue, for the purposes of verifying
federal adjusted gross income.
3.
By signing the owner's agreement:
a. the
account owner who is a natural person, other than a natural person classified
as an account owner under §711.A 5, certifies that:
i. both account owner and beneficiary are
United States citizens or permanent residents of the United States as defined
by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) or its successor or be
lawfully residing in the United States and have a valid Social Security number;
and
(a). if permanent residents have provided
copies of USCIS documentation with the submission of the application and
owner's agreement; or
(b). if in
the United States lawfully with a valid Social Security number have provided
the visa or other document(s) from the USCIS evidencing lawful residency and a
copy of the Social Security card from the Social Security Administration;
and
ii. the information
provided in the application is true and correct;
b. the person signing on behalf of an account
owner who is a legal entity certifies that:
i. the account owner is a legal
entity as defined in rule and the application;
ii. he or she is the designated agent of the
legal entity;
iii. he or she is
authorized to take any action permitted the account owner;
iv. the account owner acknowledges and agrees
that once funds are deposited in a START account, neither the deposits nor the
interest earned thereon can be refunded to the account owner;
v. the information provided in the
application is true and correct; and
vi. if the beneficiary is not a Louisiana
resident, the legal entity fulfills the definition of Louisiana
resident as found in rule and the application;
c. the natural person classified as an
account owner under §711.A.5 certifies that:
i. the beneficiary is a Louisiana
resident;
ii. the federal adjusted
income of the beneficiary's family is less than $30,000 or the beneficiary is
eligible for a free lunch under the Richard B. Russell National School Act (
42 USC
1751 et seq.);
iii. the beneficiary is not a member of the
account owner's family nor a member of the family of any member or employee of
the authority or LOSFA;
iv. the
account owner acknowledges and agrees that once funds are deposited in a START
account, neither the deposits nor the interest earned thereon can be refunded
to the account owner; and
v. the
information provided in the application is true and correct.
4. Social Security
numbers and federal and state employer identification numbers will be used for
purposes of federal and state income tax reporting and to access individual
account information for administrative purposes (see §721).
I. Number of Accounts for a
Beneficiary. There is no limit on the number of START K12 accounts that may be
opened for one beneficiary by different account owners; however, the cumulative
credits in all accounts for the same beneficiary may not exceed the maximum
allowable account balance for that beneficiary and the cumulative credits in
all START K12 accounts for the same beneficiary will be used to determine when
these accounts are fully funded.
AUTHORITY NOTE:
Promulgated in accordance with
R.S.
17:3100.1 et
seq.