Panel Rejects Bill on Tax-Free Savings for College Tuition
A bill seeking to help parents finance their children’s college education through tax-free savings accounts appeared all but dead Friday after it failed in an Assembly committee.
The bill (AB 13) would have established a program called Scholarshare, allowing parents to invest in a state-run, pooled account specifically for college expenses. The approach would give families a higher rate of return.
The bill failed on a straight party-line vote, with Democrats opposed and Republicans in favor. Five Democrats who were co-authors of the bill voted against it.
“This is pure partisan politics,” said the bill’s author, Assemblyman Brooks Firestone (R-Los Olivos). “I’m extremely disappointed because it’s the students of California who suffer.”
A similar prepaid tuition plan, proposed by state Sen. Tom Hayden (D-Los Angeles), is due for a vote in the Senate next week.
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