Next month will mark the tenth anniversary of The ABLE (Achieving a Better Life Experience) program, now called the Enable Savings Plan. Enacted by the Nebraska Legislature in 2015, it allows Nebraskans with certain disabilities to create tax-advantaged savings accounts to pay for qualified disability-related expenses. Now, a new legislative bill—LB391— aims to expand the law and help more Nebraskans with disabilities.
Under the expanded provisions eligible individuals and families in Nebraska can establish investment accounts to set aside as much as $18,000 a year (this includes contributions from the account owner, family, friends, and other sources and up from the previous limit of $5,000 a year) up to a total of $100,000 to be used for the education, housing, assistive technology, and other needs of persons with disabilities.
Disability expenses that qualify include:
- Assistive technology and personal support services.
- Education.
- Employment training and support.
- Expenses for oversight and monitoring
- Financial management and administrative services.
- Funeral and burial services.
- Health, prevention and wellness.
- Housing.
- Legal fees.
- Transportation.
Currently, to be eligible for an Enable Savings Plan account, a person’s disability must have begun before the age of 26 (although an account can be opened at any age). If LB391 is enacted into law, eligibility will be expanded to include people who have a disability that began before age 46. This expansion will allow thousands more Nebraskans including many Veterans to be eligible for Enable Savings Plan accounts when the law would become effective January 1. 2026.
Enable Savings Plan investment growth is not taxable and is not countable income if the funds are used to pay for qualified disability expenses. Generally, an adult with disabilities who has more than $2,000 in countable assets is ineligible for public assistance programs such as Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI). But the Enable Savings Plan allows disabled individuals and their families to save money in tax-free accounts without losing access to federally funded, means-tested benefits, because these accounts are exempt from countable income. The result is that people with disabilities can save and invest for the future without jeopardizing benefits like Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition and Assistance Program (SNAP), and SSI.
Federal legislation allows states to establish these kinds of accounts and all, but four states (Idaho, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin) have ABLE programs.
“The Enable Program is, for some Nebraska families, not just another benefit but an economic lifeline, and, as the name implies, a way to empower Nebraskans to achieve a better life experience,” says State Senator Dave Murman of Glenvil who introduced LB391. “This bill is just one of the ways I hope we can strengthen it.”
We at Cuddigan Law supported the original ABLE account legislation in Nebraska and we applaud this potential expansion. If you or someone you care about is eligible for an Enable Savings Plan account, we encourage you to look into this opportunity to see if it could be financially helpful for your individual circumstances.
