Pennsylvania Treasury Department Praised for PA 529 Pennsylvania Treasury Department has been praised for PA 529 Investment Plan. Morningstar, a financial services company that rates 529 plans across the country, recently reinforced the reasons it awarded the Pennsylvania Treasury Department’s PA 529 College and Career Savings Program Investment Plan (IP) its Gold Rating in November – making it one of only two plans in the nation to receive Morningstar’s highest rating. In a recent article (“Morningstar’s Top-Ranked 529 Plans”), Morningstar praised Treasury’s “aggressive negotiations for lower fees and additional fee breakpoints” which “led to a more positive investor experience.” It also highlighted the department’s “effective and steadfast advocacy on behalf of its investors [which] puts the plan a notch above peers.” “My team and I are proud of the fact that we earned Morningstar’s Gold Rating because it means that we’re doing a great job for the hardworking Pennsylvania families who use the PA 529 IP to save for education,” Treasurer Stacy Garrity said. “Our focus is always on the people who are saving every dollar they can to give their children and grandchildren the education they want and deserve. We will continue working day in and day out to give Pennsylvania families even more reasons to save for their child’s bright future with PA 529.” The PA 529 IP allows families to choose from a variety of investment portfolios, including target enrollment date options, which automatically adjust asset allocations to become more conservative as a child reaches the anticipated date of enrollment in post-high school education. PA 529 IP earnings are dependent upon financial market performance. Since taking office in 2021, Treasurer Garrity has overseen several changes to PA 529 plans, making them more accessible and affordable for Pennsylvania families, including eliminating the minimum deposit to open an account and reducing the minimum contribution to one dollar, on top of multiple fee reductions that have saved more than $11.5 million for families across the whole PA 529 program, which also includes the PA 529 Guaranteed Savings Plan (GSP). There are nearly 301,000 combined PA 529 IP and GSP accounts with more than $7.7 billion in assets. The PA 529 College and Career Savings Program helps families steadily and strategically save for future educational expenses like tuition, fees, books, equipment, room and board and more at qualifying technical, collegiate and apprenticeship programs. PA 529 plans offer significant state and federal tax advantages and saving with PA 529 does not impact Pennsylvania state financial aid eligibility. To learn more about PA 529 accounts visit pa529.com, call 800-440-4000 or email pa529@patreasury.gov.
The Pennsylvania Treasury Department Warns Against Scammers Treasurer Stacy Garrity today warned Pennsylvanians that scammers are calling residents who have applied for a Property Tax/Rent Rebate and asking for bank account information in an effort to steal valuable personal information. She reminded people that the Pennsylvania Treasury Department will never call and ask for bank information. In this scam, the caller claims to be from Treasury and asks for a bank account number – supposedly so a Property Tax/Rent Rebate payment can be made by direct deposit. “The sad reality is that scammers never stop, and we all need to be constantly on guard,” Treasurer Garrity said. “It sickens me that they’re targeting the seniors and people with disabilities who applied for a Property Tax/Rent Rebate, but these criminals have no conscience or compassion.” She added that people should never give out their bank account information or other personal financial information simply because someone calls and asks for it. “If someone claims to be from the Pennsylvania Treasury Department, do not hesitate to contact us to confirm that it’s really us,” Treasurer Garrity said. The best way to contact Treasury is with the form available at https://www.patreasury.gov/contact/. Direct deposit is available for Property Tax/Rent Rebates, but recipients must include that information on their application before submitting it to the Department of Revenue. Treasury recommends direct deposit over U.S. mail to expedite the process of receiving payment. The Property Tax/Rent Rebate Program benefits Pennsylvanians age 65 and older, widows and widowers age 50 and older, and people with disabilities age 18 and older. The maximum standard rebate this year is $650. Some homeowners may qualify for supplemental rebates. So far this year, Treasury has processed more than 355,000 payments totaling more than $167 million. More than half of those payments were sent electronically. Applications can be filed online through the Department of Revenue’s myPATH system. Anyone who has already applied for this year’s rebate can check the status by using the Department of Revenue’s Where’s My Rebate? online tool.
