College Savings

BEST Prepaid Plan

Baccalaureate Education System Trust (BEST) Prepaid Plan

On May 18, 2021, Public Chapter 469 was signed into law, effectively terminating all remaining contracts in the program by December 31, 2021.

Automatic refunds were issued on November 19, 2021

An automatic program-initiated refund was issued on November 19, 2021 to the named Refund Recipient for any BEST contracts for which there was no activity taken prior to November 1, 2021. Refunds were paid out at the unit rate effective for the last academic year your beneficiary was certified.

Tax Considerations

Withdrawals, including program-initiated refunds, are considered non-qualified withdrawals and are subject to federal tax consequences unless (1) you or the beneficiary have retained proof of qualified higher education expenses that are equal to or greater than the amount of the withdrawal or (2) you rolled over the distribution to a qualified 529 program within 60 days of the date of the distribution. 1099-Q forms were mailed prior to January 31, 2022. Please consult your tax advisor regarding your own circumstances.