September is the IDEAL month for college savings in Idaho

TWIN FALLS, Idaho (KMVT/KSVT) —September is college savings month nationwide and here in Idaho.

It’s a reminder that it’s never too early to save and invest in future education. Governor Brad Little signed a proclamation on September first to bring awareness to the month.

It states several reasons that saving for college isn’t just beneficial financially but also encouraging.

Saving for college early means less student debt later on and it increases a student’s chances of going on to higher education. Even with Idaho programs like LAUNCH helping with student fees there’s still at least 20 percent of fees that a student needs to cover on their own.

Even with scholarship and grant programs like Idaho LAUNCH, which will provide up to $8,000 for education and training after high school, Idahoans must be prepared to cover a portion of the cost of attending college.

One of the ways Idahoans can save is with ideal is the states tax advantaged qualified education tuition savings plan. And there’s many ways it can be used for educational expenses.

IDEAL Executive Director Marilyn Whitney says, “It can be K12, it can be higher education, trade school, apprenticeship, and as an Idaho taxpayer you get great benefits with your Idaho 529 including tax incentives for your annual contributions tax deferred growth on your investment if you use the funds for a qualified education expense so there’s many benefits to saving through Ideal.”

To celebrate college savings month Ideal has special promotions that you can find on their website here.

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