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| | - Federal tax credits for higher education tuition costs
- New laws now in effect
- National health care reform
For more news and resources, please visit my web site.
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| Dear Neighbor: With summer nearing its end, many of us are thinking about school supplies, bus schedules, textbooks and course schedules. Seattle Public Schools open their doors for the 2009-2010 school year in just four weeks while many colleges' and universities' courses begin this month! This week's e-memo provides some useful information for your kids as they begin their college careers. Want to save up to $2,500 off college expenses for you or your child? If your child is taking college classes this fall (or if YOU are), you're probably eligible for some assistance from the federal government! As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, a temporary tax credit is in effect for 2009 and 2010 that can save you as much as $2,500 for higher education expenses. The American Opportunity Credit is worth up to $2,500 of the cost of tuition and related expenses. The full credit is available to those who make up to $80,000 a year – or $160,000 if you're filing a joint return. Even if you don't make enough money to file a return, you should file one anyway because you may get up to $1,000 back. And if you have a Section 529 college-savings plan, you can spend those funds on a computer used for college. If you have questions about the American Opportunity Credit, this webpage can help: http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=211309,00.html When filing your 2009 and 2010 taxes, be sure to check it out. Visit irs.gov/recovery for more information on this and other tax credits available through the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Bills passed last session are now laws A great many of the laws passed earlier this year went into effect the last week of July. Some of the brand new laws getting the greatest attention include: - Woman's right to breastfeed (HB 1596). Ensures that Washington's Law Against Discrimination protects the right of a mother to breastfeed her child in any place of public resort, accommodation, assemblage, or amusement.
- Tattoos and body-piercing safety (SB 5391) Persons practicing body art, body piercing and tattooing must now obtain a license and comply with state health standards for conducting their business;
- Safer schools (HB 1741). In response to incidents of severe sexual misconduct with students, a new law that passed with the full support of the Washington Education Association greatly expands the list of serious crimes that require automatic dismissal of teachers or other school employees.
- Child Welfare Reform (HB 2106). We learned that expanding evidence-based programs in child-welfare services could help children avoid out-of-home placements and produce long-term state benefits of between $317 and $493 million. That's why we enacted major reforms that will convert some 1,800 existing child-welfare service contracts into performance contracts that reward improved results. The new law also explores opportunities for privatizing various child welfare services.
- Education reform (HB 2261). This important but much-misunderstood bill defines a process for increasing accountability for student success and greatly expanding the state's responsibility to fully fund "Basic Education." The Legislature must hold itself accountable for living up to our duty to make education the paramount duty of the state! I co-sponsored this reform because modernizing state funding formulas and expanding constitutionally protected school funding is vital to helping students and teachers succeed.
- Revitalizing student financial aid (HB 2021). I am the prime sponsor of this bill, which labels all state aid and most federal aid programs under the new banner of Opportunity Pathway. This bill also creates the Washington Higher Education Loan Program (HELP) to provide low-cost student loans to assist students in need and requires resident undergraduate students be notified of any federal tax credits related to higher education. This legislation will help to better inform students, parents, teachers and advisors of the financial resources available to attend college by directing them to a single gateway
- Creating a Department of Commerce (HB 2242). Over the years, the Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development has become an agency charged with many diverse missions. As a result, its programs and services are a mile wide and an inch deep. I was the prime sponsor of this bill, which changes the name of the Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development to the Department of Commerce. HB 2242 also requires the Department of Commerce Director to develop recommendations for the Governor and appropriate legislative committees on the Department mission, goals, organizational structure, responsibilities, program alignment, service delivery mechanisms and related issues. This will not only help to improve the effectiveness of the programs the Department of Commerce provides to the state, but also will help to reduce costs, saving taxpayer dollars.
This is just a small sample from the new laws that took effect on July 26. Click this link to see a PDF list of all new laws passed in 2009. Please don't hesitate to contact me if you have questions or comments about any of the new laws passed this year! Coming up in our next edition Just like you, I am sorting through the noise surrounding the national health care debate. Each individual who is listening to and reading news reports about the federal debate is probably asking one key question: "How will this affect me?" I hope to help answer those concerns in our next issue of this e-memo. For information on the national health care debate and President Obama's reform plan, follow this link.
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