The Georgia Governor’s Office announced Wednesday that enhancements to the state’s college savings plan are taking effect to help families spend less for future education costs.
Path2College 529 serves as Georgia’s official 529 plan, which offers families a state income tax deduction, tax‑deferred growth and tax‑free withdrawals when used for education expenses.
Funds may be used for a variety of educational costs, including traditional college programs, technical colleges, certain apprenticeship programs, K‑12 tuition and qualified education loan repayment.
“These important changes will allow Georgia families to save more for education while benefiting from the most affordable 529 plan in the country,” said Georgia’s State Treasurer Steve McCoy, whose office administers the plan, in a Wednesday press release.
Senate Bill 556, which was signed into law by Gov. Brian Kemp in May, raises the maximum account balance for plan accounts from $235,000 to $550,000.
Separately, the Georgia Higher Education Savings Plan (GHESP) Board has approved a waiver of the state administrative fee for the state’s 529 plan.
According to the governor’s office, the decision from the board makes the Path2College 529 Plan the lowest-cost college savings plan in the nation.
“Our state is one of the best in the nation for both quality of higher education and affordability and raising the 529 Plan limit helps ensure that remains so well into the future,” said Gov. Brian Kemp in the release. “By making it even easier for parents to save for their child’s college tuition, we’re strengthening the future of our state and its economy.”
The state’s income tax deduction is $4,000 per child per year for single filers and $8,000 per child per year for joint filers.
Separately, Senate Bill 556 will allow Georgia taxpayers to take a state income tax deduction when using other 529 plans with limits.
The law mandates that a list of those programs be published annually.
