Alabama’s Treasury manages two college savings plans: Alabama’s Prepaid Affordable College Tuition program (PACT); and the Alabama Higher Education 529 Fund.

For the previous seven years, PACT has operated at an annual deficit, which culminated in a ~$400 million total shortfall in present assets relative towards future liabilities. Though a financial stimulus for PACT was created during the 2010 legislative session, administrative costs must be reduced while investment performance is improved. Unless PACT begins to perform at a level necessary to match rising tuition costs, PACT will eventually necessitate future funding from the Legislature.

Due to the financial mismanagement of PACT over the previous eight years, the Alabama Higher Education 529 Fund is the sole vehicle for future state-sponsored college savings within Alabama. More than 11,000 families presently participate in the AL 529 Fund. As Treasurer, I will actively search the marketplace for the best investment administrator for Alabama’s 529 Fund, providing the best services and advice for the lowest administrative cost.

Further, I will engage Alabama’s colleges and universities in a partnership to pay initial deposit costs and match subsequent payments paid into AL 529 accounts for low-income and aspiring first-generation college families.