Missouri MOST 529 Matching Grant Program

PURPOSE: This rule sets forth the criteria to be used by the Missouri Higher Education Savings Program Board regarding the awarding of matching grants to eligible participants in the Missouri Higher Education Savings Program under the MOST 529 Matching Grant Program and the administration of the MOST 529 Matching Grant Program. (1) Definitions. (A) Existing Missouri Definitions. The following terms, as used in this rule, are defined in section 166.410, RSMo: Beneficiary, Board, Eligible Educational Institution, Participation Agreement, and Program. The following terms, as used in this rule, are defined in the Missouri Code of State Regulations, 15 CSR 50-4.020(2): Account Owner, Member of the Family, Non-qualified Withdrawal, Qualified Withdrawal, and Participant. (B) Additional Definitions. The following definitions shall also apply to the following terms as they are used in this rule: 1. “MOST Matching Grant” means funds granted to an eligible account owner pursuant to the MOST 529 Matching Grant Program; 2. “MOST Matching Grant Account” means an account maintained for a beneficiary in which MOST matching grant funds are deposited; 3.“MOST Matching Grant Application” means the application required to be submitted by an account owner to be considered for a MOST matching grant; 4. “Plan Account” means the account in the program established by a participant and maintained for a beneficiary; and 5. “Plan Description” means the MOST—Missouri’s 529 Education Plan Program Description. (2) Program Description. The MOST 529 Matching Grant Program is a limited grant program administered by the board as set forth below. The MOST 529 Matching Grant Program is funded with money provided by the program manager of the program. The program may not be funded every year. When funded, funds are limited and, in any given year, may be capped by the board in an amount determined by the board to ensure availability of funds for the duration of the grant program. The funds will be granted to eligible applicants on a first-come, firstserved basis. (3) MOST Matching Grant Awards. (A) Applicants who are approved by the board will receive a match rate of one dollar ($1) for every one dollar ($1) contributed in a calendar year, up to a yearly match limit of five hundred dollars ($500). (B) The lifetime maximum match amount for a beneficiary is two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500). (C) Applicants submitting an application during the enrollment period are eligible to receive matching funds for contributions to a plan account made in the same calendar year. For example, applicants who are awarded the MOST matching grant for the 2012 enrollment period will receive matching funds for contributions made to a plan account from January 1 to December 31, 2012. (D) Applicants who are awarded a MOST matching grant will typically receive the funds between January 1 and January 31 in the year following the approval of the MOST matching grant application and the funds will be invested according to the account owner’s current allocation instructions on file for the account owner’s plan account. (4) Eligibility Requirements. To be eligible to receive a MOST matching grant, the applicant must meet the following eligibility guidelines: (A) The beneficiary must be a Missouri resident; (B) The beneficiary may not be older than thirteen (13) years of age at the time the first MOST matching grant application is approved; (C) The household adjusted gross income of the parent(s) or legal guardian(s) of the beneficiary in the year prior to applying for a MOST matching grant may not exceed seventy-four thousand nine hundred ninety-nine dollars ($74,999); (D) The applicant must be a Missouri resident who is an account owner who is a parent, legal guardian, or foster parent of the beneficiary; and (E) Only one (1) MOST matching grant account may be opened for any beneficiary. (5) Application Requirements. (A) The applicant must have opened a plan account for the intended beneficiary. (B) The applicant must enclose with the MOST matching grant application a Missouri state income tax return establishing that the beneficiary’s household adjusted gross income falls within the eligibility requirements. If the parent(s) or legal guardian(s) of the beneficiary were not required to file a Missouri state income tax return, they must provide other evidence of residency and household income acceptable to the board. (C) The beneficiary’s Social Security number on the applicant’s plan account must match the beneficiary’s Social Security number on the matching grant application. (D) Matching grant applications will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. (E) Applicants must submit a matching grant application during the enrollment period as set by the board. (F) Applicants must reapply for the MOST matching grant each year that it is offered in order to be eligible to receive funds for that year. (6) MOST Matching Grant Accounts. (A) The MOST matching grant account will be linked to the applicant’s plan account and shall be governed by the terms and conditions of the plan description and the related participation agreements and supplements thereto, as amended from time-to-time. (B) The plan shall retain control of the assets in the MOST matching grant account until the account owner submits a request in good order for a qualified withdrawal to an eligible educational institution. (C) To withdraw funds from a MOST matching grant account, the withdrawal must be a qualified withdrawal to an eligible educational institution. (D) Under certain circumstances, the MOST matching grant and any earnings made may be fully or partially forfeited and a MOST matching grant account could be closed. These circumstances include: 1. A change in beneficiary when the new beneficiary has previously received a MOST matching grant or is not an eligible member of the family of the former beneficiary; 2. The event of the death of a beneficiary or the disability of the beneficiary which precludes him or her from attending an eligible educational institution, unless the account owner changes the beneficiary to an eligible member of the family of the former beneficiary; and 3. A non-qualified withdrawal or rollover to another state’s 529 plan is made from the plan account and the remaining plan account balance falls below the balance of the MOST matching grant account, unless, within eighteen (18) months, the account owner contributes funds to the plan account to prevent forfeiture of that portion of the MOST matching grant account that does not have corresponding funds in the plan account. (E) For beneficiaries who have a MOST matching grant account, any qualified withdrawals to an eligible educational institution generally will be taken proportionally from the plan account and the related MOST matching grant account at the time the qualified withdrawal is requested to be sent to the eligible educational institution. If the qualified withdrawal amount requested would cause the MOST matching grant account to have a market value under ten dollars ($10), the pro-rated amount of the qualified withdrawal will be adjusted so that the MOST matching grant account is fully liquidated, and the amount taken from the plan account will be reduced accordingly. If the qualified withdrawal amount requested will result in a withdrawal from the MOST matching grant account which is less than ten dollars ($10), the distribution will be adjusted so that the entire amount of withdrawal will be taken from the plan account. (F) MOST matching grant accounts will not be subject to the ten dollar ($10) annual account fee. MOST matching grant accounts are, however, subject to fees and charges that otherwise apply to a plan account as described in the program description. AUTHORITY: section 166.415, RSMo Supp. 2021.* Emergency rule filed April 5, 2012, effective April 15, 2012, expired Jan. 23, 2013. Original rule filed April 5, 2012, effective Oct. 30, 2012. Emergency amendment filed Jan. 23, 2013, effective Feb. 2, 2013, expired July 31, 2013. Amended: Filed Jan. 23, 2013, effective July 30, 2013. Amended: Filed June 13, 2019, effective Nov. 30, 2019. Amended: Filed Oct. 4, 2021, effective March 30, 2022. *Original authority: 166.415, RSMo 1998, amended 1999, 2002, 2004, 2012, 2018, 2021.