Families can register to win one of five $529 College Savings Iowa Accounts.

DES MOINES, IA (03/01/2012)(readMedia)-- State Treasurer Michael L. Fitzgerald is encouraging Iowans with young children to start thinking about saving for their children's future higher educational expenses. "As a way to raise awareness about the importance of saving for higher education we have teamed up with daycares across the state to get information into the hand of parents," Fitzgerald said. "Throughout the month of March, parents are able to register their children to win one of five $529 College Savings Iowa accounts. I would like to thank all of the daycares who volunteered to take time out of their busy days to pass this information on."

After their daycare is registered to participate, families can visit www.iowa529contest.com to enter their children in the contest. Once there, they should select the Daycare Giveaway and enter their information, including selecting their daycare from the dropdown menu. At the end of the giveaway, five children will be randomly selected from across the state to win.

College Savings Iowa is an affordable, tax-advantaged option for families who are saving for their children's higher education. It takes just $25 to open a College Savings Iowa account, and anyone - parents, grandparents, friends and relatives - can invest on behalf of a child. Participants who are Iowa taxpayers can deduct contributions up to $2,865 per beneficiary account from their adjusted gross income in 2011 and there no income or residency restrictions.*

Investors do not need to be a state resident and can withdraw their investment federally tax-free to pay for qualified higher education expenses including tuition, books, supplies and certain room and board costs at any eligible college, university, community college or technical training school in the United States or abroad. To learn more about College Savings Iowa, go to www.my529iowaplan.com or call 1-888-332-7545.

*Adjusted annually for inflation if withdrawals are not qualified, the deductions must be added back to Iowa taxable income. The earnings portion of nonqualified withdrawals may be subject to federal income tax and a 10% federal penalty tax, as well as state and local income taxes. The availability of tax or other benefits may be contingent on meeting other requirements.

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The National Financial Capability Challenge runs from March 12 to April 13, 2012

DES MOINES, IA (02/29/2012)(readMedia)-- State Treasurer Michael L. Fitzgerald is getting the word out about a new program that will boost the financial literacy of Iowa's high school students. The State Treasurer's Office is partnering with the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the U.S. Department of Education to introduce the National Financial Capability Challenge, a program that focuses on helping students increase their financial knowledge. The Challenge, which runs from March 12 through April 13, is a free, voluntary online series of financial questions for high school students to check their knowledge of earning, spending, saving, borrowing, risk protection and more.

"Financial literacy has always been one of my office's most important initiatives, so I'm glad we were given the opportunity to help implement this program," said Fitzgerald. "The Challenge is a great opportunity for participating Iowa high schools. The test and the toolkit used to prepare for it are found online, making it easy to use, and the Challenge itself is quick - it only takes 30 minutes to take. Even though it doesn't take much time to participate in the program, the lessons students learn from it will last them a lifetime. I encourage all high schools to take advantage of this opportunity."

Educators don't need to be math or personal finance teachers to register their students to participate. To register, educators should visit www.challenge.treas.gov. After signing up, they are encouraged to help spread the word about the Challenge by using the tools provided through the website. After the program concludes, educators and top-scoring students in each school will earn personalized award certificates, and states with the highest participation will also be recognized.

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If Congress fails to act, $2,500 American Opportunity Tax Credit will expire at end of year

Washington, DC - Rep. Bruce Braley (IA-01) today urged House leaders of both parties to begin working together now to pass legislation to stop the looming expiration of a popular $2,500 college tax cut.  Unless Congress Acts, the American Opportunity Tax Credit - which provides a partially refundable tax credit of up to $2,500 to offset the cost of tuition for college - will expire at the end of 2012.

Last month, Braley introduced the College Tax Cut Extension Act to extend the American Opportunity Tax Credit for four more years.

"Iowa college graduates have the 3^rd highest student debt load in the nation," Braley said.  "Piling more costs on Iowa students by letting this tax cut expire puts them even further behind at graduation.  Worse, for the average Iowa community college student, letting this tax cut expire would be equivalent to a nearly 15 percent increase in tuition.

"Our colleges, universities, and community colleges are avenues of economic opportunity, and we need to keep higher education affordable for every person who wants to attend. That's why I'm urging House leaders of both parties to begin working now to extend this college tax cut instead of letting partisan politics get in the way of doing the right thing."

Braley made the request in a letter to House Speaker John Boehner and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, which can be read below and downloaded at the following link: http://go.usa.gov/Ufl

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February 29, 2012

The Honorable John Boehner                       

Speaker                       

U.S. House of Representatives               

H-232, U.S. Capitol                       

Washington, DC 20515                         

The Honorable Nancy Pelosi

Minority Leader

U.S. House of Representatives

H-204, U.S. Capitol

Washington, DC 20515

Dear Speaker Boehner and Minority Leader Pelosi:

As you may know, the American Opportunity Tax Credit is scheduled to expire at the end of the year.  I've introduced the College Tax Cut Extension Act which would extend this tax credit for four more years.  Please work together to pass my legislation to extend this important tax credit.

This tax credit provides up to $2,500 to undergraduate college students for tuition as well as coursework materials including books.  It is no secret that college tuition continues to drastically increase.  In Iowa, tuition costs have increased by 82.9 percent since 2000 while median household income has decreased by 6.3 percent.  Iowa students are also graduating with some of the highest debt in the country.  Iowa students graduate with the 3rd highest student debt loan of any state in the United States.  These alarming statistics shows us how important it is to extend this tax credit.

As college tuition continues to drastically rise, students cannot afford thousands of more dollars in bills because Congress failed to act.  After witnessing the debacle that occurred over the payroll tax extension, I would hate to see a similar scenario occur with this issue.  Please pass my College Tax Cut Extension Act extending the American Opportunity Tax Credit for four more years.  I stand ready to work in any way possible to make sure we keep student loan interest rates at their current level.

Sincerely,

Bruce L. Braley

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Statement by Chris Bern, President of the Iowa State Education Association

on Iowa's Application for a Waiver to the No Child Left Behind Law

DES MOINES, IA (02/28/2012)(readMedia)-- At this time, the Iowa State Education Association (ISEA) is not signing on in support of Iowa's application for a waiver to the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law. While we understand the need to move away from the one-size-fits-all approach to testing and school accountability under NCLB, the ISEA still has questions about the specifics of this application that need to be addressed.

One area of concern for educators is tying student achievement data to teacher evaluations. As frontline professionals, our members need to be at the table when those decisions are made and the state should be cautious when proceeding with this large policy shift.

In addition, we are concerned that implementation of the waiver application will require resources and education funding decisions are still a long way off in the legislative session. From its inception the education community has realized that NCLB did not provide states the resources to meet the demands of the law. As Iowa applies for the waiver, we do not need to trade in one unfunded mandate (NCLB) for another.

The ISEA remains deeply committed to the success of every child and is ready and willing to work with all of the partners in the education community; teachers, administrators, parents, and policymakers, to ensure our education policies place students at the center. Until our members have had adequate time to review and contribute to the NCLB waiver discussion, the ISEA will not be lending its support to Iowa's application at this time.

The ISEA is a private, professional organization made up of over 34,000 educators who are dedicated to promoting and preserving public education for all Iowa students. Great Education. It's an Iowa Basic.