Connecticut General Statutes 3-39k – Achieving a better life experience program: Establishment. Trust. Report
(a) The State Treasurer (1) shall establish a qualified ABLE program pursuant to the federal ABLE Act and sections 3-39j to 3-39q, inclusive, and (2) may contract with any state with a qualified ABLE program established pursuant to the federal ABLE Act to provide residents of this state with access to such state’s program.
Terms Used In Connecticut General Statutes 3-39k
- Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
- Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. Source: OCC
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
- Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
- Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
- Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
- Power of attorney: A written instrument which authorizes one person to act as another's agent or attorney. The power of attorney may be for a definite, specific act, or it may be general in nature. The terms of the written power of attorney may specify when it will expire. If not, the power of attorney usually expires when the person granting it dies. Source: OCC
(b) (1) Under the program established pursuant to subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of this section: (A) The State Treasurer shall administer individual ABLE accounts to encourage and assist eligible individuals and their families in saving private funds to provide support for eligible individuals, and (B) a person may make contributions to an individual ABLE account to meet the qualified disability expenses of the designated beneficiary of the account.
(2) For the purposes of such program, there is established within the Office of the State Treasurer the Connecticut Achieving A Better Life Experience Trust. The trust shall constitute an instrumentality of the state and shall perform essential governmental functions, as provided in sections 3-39j to 3-39q, inclusive. The trust shall receive and hold all payments and deposits intended for ABLE accounts as well as gifts, bequests, endowments or federal, state or local grants and any other funds from public or private sources and all earnings, until disbursed in accordance with sections 3-39j to 3-39q, inclusive.
(c) (1) The amounts on deposit in the trust shall not constitute property of the state and the trust shall not be construed to be a department, institution or agency of the state. Amounts on deposit in the trust shall not be commingled with state funds and the state shall have no claim to or against, or interest in, such amounts, except as provided in subdivision (2) of this subsection. Any contract entered into by, or any obligation of, the trust shall not constitute a debt or obligation of the state and the state shall have no obligation to any designated beneficiary or any other person on account of the trust and all amounts obligated to be paid from the trust shall be limited to amounts available for such obligation on deposit in the trust. The amounts on deposit in the trust may only be disbursed in accordance with the provisions of sections 3-39j to 3-39q, inclusive.
(2) The trust shall continue in existence as long as it holds any deposits or other funds or has any obligations and until its existence is terminated by law, and upon termination of the trust, any unclaimed assets of the trust shall return to the state. Property of the trust shall be governed by § 3-61a.
(d) The State Treasurer shall be responsible for the receipt, maintenance, administration, investment and disbursements of amounts from the trust. The trust shall not receive deposits in any form other than cash. No depositor or designated beneficiary may direct the investment of any contributions or amounts held in the trust other than in the specific fund options provided for by the trust and shall not direct investments in such specific fund options more than two times in any calendar year. No interest, or portion of any interest, in the program shall be used as security for a loan.
(e) A person may make deposits to an ABLE account to meet the qualified disability expenses of the designated beneficiary of the account, provided the trust and deposits meet the other requirements of this section, the federal ABLE Act and any regulations adopted pursuant to the federal ABLE Act by the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States.
(f) On or before December 31, 2017, and annually thereafter, the State Treasurer shall submit (1) in accordance with the provisions of subsection (a) of § 3-37, a report to the Governor on the operations of the trust, including the receipts, disbursements, assets, investments and liabilities and administrative costs of the trust for the prior fiscal year, and (2) in accordance with the provisions of § 11-4a, a report on the trust and any contract entered into pursuant to subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of this section to the joint standing committees of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to finance and public health, and shall make such report available to each depositor and designated beneficiary. The report required under subdivision (2) of this subsection shall include, but need not be limited to: (A) The number of ABLE accounts; (B) the total amount of contributions to such accounts; (C) the total amount and nature of distributions from such accounts; and (D) a description of issues relating to the abuse of such accounts, if any.
(g) An ABLE account may be established (1) by the eligible individual, (2) by a person selected by the eligible individual, or (3) if the eligible individual is unable to establish an ABLE account, on behalf of such individual by, in the following order: Such individual’s agent under a power of attorney, a conservator or legal guardian, spouse, parent, sibling, grandparent, or a representative payee appointed for the eligible individual by the Social Security Administration.