Section 701.40.81. Iowa ABLE savings plan trust.

 The Iowa ABLE savings plan trust was created so that individuals can contribute funds on behalf of designated beneficiaries into accounts administered by the treasurer of state. The funds contributed to the trust may be used to cover future disability-related expenses of the designated beneficiary. The funds contributed to the trust are intended to supplement, but not supplant, other benefits provided to the designated beneficiary by various federal, state, and private sources. The Iowa ABLE savings plan program is administered by the treasurer of state under the terms of Iowa Code chapter 12I. The following subrules provide details about how an individual’s net income is affected by contributions to a beneficiary’s account, by interest and any other earnings on a beneficiary’s account, and by distributions of contributions which were previously deducted.

         40.81(1) Definitions.

“Account owner”   means an individual who enters into a participation agreement under Iowa Code chapter 12I for the payment of qualified disability expenses on behalf of a designated beneficiary.

“Designated beneficiary”   means an individual who is a resident of this state or a resident of a contracting state and who meets the definition of “eligible individual” found in Section 529A of the Internal Revenue Code.

“Iowa ABLE savings plan trust”   means a qualified ABLE program administered by the Iowa treasurer of state under the terms of Iowa Code chapter 12I.

“Other qualified ABLE program”   refers to any qualified ABLE program administered by another state with which the Iowa treasurer of state has entered into an agreement under the terms of Iowa Code section 12I.10 (see subrule 40.81(2) below).

“Qualified ABLE program”   means the same as defined in Section 529A of the Internal Revenue Code.

“Qualified disability expenses”   means the same as defined in Section 529A of the Internal Revenue Code.

         40.81(2) Contracting with other states. Iowa Code section 12I.10 allows the treasurer of state to choose to defer implementation of Iowa’s own qualified ABLE program and instead enter into an agreement with another state that already has a qualified ABLE program, to provide Iowa residents access to that state’s qualified ABLE program, provided that the other state’s program meets the qualifications set out in Iowa Code section 12I.10(1).

         40.81(3) Subtraction from net income for contributions made to the Iowa ABLE savings plan trust or other qualified ABLE program. For tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2016, individuals can subtract from their Iowa net income the amount contributed to the Iowa ABLE savings plan trust or other qualified ABLE program on behalf of a designated beneficiary during the tax year, subject to the maximum contribution level for that year.

         40.81(4) Exclusion of interest and earnings on beneficiary accounts in the Iowa ABLE savings plan trust or other qualified ABLE program. For tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2016, to the extent that interest or other earnings accrue on an account in the Iowa ABLE savings plan trust or other qualified ABLE program (if the account owner is an Iowa resident), the interest or other earnings are excluded for purposes of computing net income on the designated beneficiary’s Iowa individual income tax return.

         40.81(5) Addition to net income of amounts distributed to the participant from the Iowa ABLE savings plan trust or other qualified ABLE program that had previously been deducted.

            a.                For tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2016, if a taxpayer, as an account owner, cancels the account owner’s account in the Iowa ABLE savings plan trust or other qualified ABLE program and receives a distribution of the funds in the account, the amount of the distribution shall be included in net income on the account owner’s Iowa individual income tax return to the extent that contributions to the account had been deducted on prior state individual income tax returns of the account owner or any other person as a contribution to the Iowa ABLE savings plan trust or other qualified ABLE program.

            b.                For tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2016, if a taxpayer makes a withdrawal of funds previously deducted by the taxpayer or any other person from the Iowa ABLE savings plan trust or other qualified ABLE program for purposes other than the payment of qualified disability expenses, the amount of the withdrawal shall be included in net income on the taxpayer’s Iowa individual income tax return to the extent that contributions to the account had been deducted on prior state individual income tax returns of the taxpayer or any other person.

         40.81(6) Maximum contribution level. The amount of the deduction available for an individual taxpayer each year for contributions on behalf of any one designated beneficiary to the Iowa ABLE savings plan trust or other qualified ABLE program may not exceed the maximum contribution level for that year. The maximum contribution level is set by the treasurer of state. The maximum contribution level is indexed yearly for inflation pursuant to Iowa Code section 12D.3(1)“a.”

This rule is intended to implement Iowa Code section 422.7 as amended by 2015 Iowa Acts, chapter 137.

[ ARC 2691C , IAB 8/31/16, effective 10/5/16]