ECONOMICS REPORT - Savings Plans Help Ease Pain of College C

ECONOMICS REPORT - Savings¹ Plans Help Ease Pain of College Costs
By Mario Ritter

Broadcast: Friday, July 29, 2005

I'm Steve Ember with the VOA Special English Economics Report.

 
 
A college education is an investment in the future. But it can be a costly² investment. The College Board estimates that the costs at a four-year public college in the United States increased ten percent this past school year. That was less than the thirteen percent increase the year before, but still much higher than the inflation rate. Public colleges and universities still cost a lot less than private ones.

Financial aid often helps. But financial advisers³ tell parents to start college savings plans when their child is still very young.

All fifty states and the District of Columbia offer what are called five-twenty-nine plans. These plans are named after the part of the federal tax law that created them in nineteen ninety-six. States use private investment companies to operate most programs.

Every state has its own rules governing five-twenty-nine plans. Some of the plans are free of state taxes. And all are free of federal taxes. However, the government could start to tax withdrawals⁴ in two thousand eleven if Congress does not change the law.

Five-twenty-nine plans include investment accounts that increase or decrease in value with the investments they contain. Families must decide how aggressively they want to put money into stocks, bonds or other investments.

Another kind of five-twenty-nine plan lets parents begin to pay for their child's education long before their child starts college. This kind of savings program is called a prepaid tuition plan. The money goes into an account to pay for an education at a public college or university in the family's home state.

What if a student decides to go to college in another state ... or not go to college at all? Any unused money in a college savings plan can be put into an account for the education of another family member. Or the parents can withdraw the money, but they will lose at least ten percent of the earnings⁵ in taxes.

Families that invest in the five-twenty-nine plan of another state may also have to pay taxes. Many plans are open to families outside the state.

There are limits to how much money families can put into five-twenty-nine plans. But there are other ways to save for college while also saving on taxes. One way is for parents to put money into what is called a custodial⁶ account for their child until the child becomes an adult.

This VOA Special English Economics Report was written by Mario Ritter.  I'm Steve Ember.

1 savings   

n.存款，储蓄

参考例句：

• I can't afford the vacation,for it would eat up my savings.我度不起假，那样会把我的积蓄用光的。
• By this time he had used up all his savings.到这时，他的存款已全部用完。

2 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

3 advisers   

顾问，劝告者( adviser的名词复数 )； （指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授

参考例句：

• a member of the President's favoured circle of advisers 总统宠爱的顾问班子中的一员
• She withdrew to confer with her advisers before announcing a decision. 她先去请教顾问然后再宣布决定。

4 withdrawals   

n.收回，取回，撤回( withdrawal的名词复数 )；撤退，撤走；收回[取回，撤回，撤退，撤走]的实例；推出（组织），提走（存款），戒除毒瘾，对说过的话收回，孤僻

参考例句：

• He has made several withdrawals from his bank account. 他从银行账户上提了几次款。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• It is not the bank's policy to deduct interest on withdrawals. 提款需扣除利息这并非是本银行的政策。 来自辞典例句

5 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。

6 custodial   

adj.监护的，照管的

参考例句：

• The teenagers were convicted of manslaughter and given a two-year custodial sentence. 这些青少年被判过失杀人罪，及二年的监禁（拘留）刑罚。
• This article interrogates the cultural experience of being a non custodial mother. 本文审视一位无监护权的母亲所感受到的文化体验。