The ABLE Savings Program in Hawaii is in the works.
ABLE accounts are bank accounts that enable persons with special needs to save money while still receiving disability payments. The federal ABLE (Achieving a Better Life Experience) Act inspired ABLE accounts, however they are formed and administered at the state level.
ABLE accounts are not yet available in all jurisdictions, and each state will have somewhat different laws and processes for creating and utilizing an ABLE account.
The Hawaii ABLE Savings Program is being developed in Hawaii. You cannot create a Hawaii ABLE account at the moment, however Hawaii citizens may open an ABLE account in another state.
People with special needs must demonstrate that they do not have enough money to maintain themselves independently when applying for disability payments. Any money in a typical bank account counts against a person’s eligibility for disability payments.
As a consequence, persons with special needs are unable to save money that they earn or acquire via inheritance or gifts. On a daily level, this implies that persons with special needs must live on very little money in order to get government assistance.
One solution to this problem is to employ special needs trusts, which give a location to preserve money for the benefit of the person with special needs (without affecting his or her eligibility for benefits). Special needs trusts, on the other hand, must be governed by a trustee, not the individual with special needs who benefits from the trust. This not only gives a special needs person minimal control over his or her resources, but it also inhibits the individual’s independence.
ABLE accounts cover this need by allowing persons with special needs to manage a small bank account without jeopardizing their eligibility for SSI, Medicaid, or other government assistance.
The federal ABLE Act establishes the fundamental guidelines for all ABLE accounts. (The federal act may be found at https://www.congress.gov/bill/113th-congress/house-bill/647/.) When states approve and execute the ABLE Act, they must follow federal guidelines while also adding their own. The following are the federal regulations:
When individual states enact the ABLE Act and establish ABLE accounts for their inhabitants, they may additionally establish regulations and policies regarding:
The Hawaii ABLE Savings Account Act (HRS 256B-1 through HRS 256B-8) was enacted in Hawaii. The laws may be found at http://law.justia.com/codes/hawaii/2015/title-14/chapter-256b/. The program is presently in the works. While ABLE accounts are not accessible in Hawaii, citizens of Hawaii may create an ABLE account in another state that enables non-residents to open ABLE accounts (sometimes with higher non-resident fees).
