Sec. 1. 20-A MRSA §11473, sub-§3, as enacted by PL 1997, c. 732, §4, is amended to read:

3. Application of program fund. Money in the program fund may be applied to carry out any power of the authority under or in connection with this chapter. All money in the program fund must be continuously applied by the authority to carry out this chapter and for no other purpose. Assets of the program fund must at all times be preserved, invested and expended only for the purposes of the program and must be held for the benefit of the participants and beneficiaries, including the refunding of fees paid by participants or any class of participants, the matching of contributions made by participants or any class of participants or the use of funds to provide scholarships to program account beneficiaries who attend institutions of higher education in the State. Assets may not be transferred or used by the State or the authority for any purposes other than the purposes of the program. All amounts in the program fund, except for contributions and program earnings that have been credited to an account, may be used by the authority to pay the administrative costs of the program and program fund, as determined by the authority.

Sec. 2. 20-A MRSA §11475, sub-§3, as enacted by PL 1997, c. 732, §4, is amended to read:

3. Designation of beneficiaries. A Except for accounts opened by a state or local governmental entity or charitable organization, an application or participation agreement must designate the name and date of birth of the beneficiary. A beneficiary designated in a participation agreement may be designated from date of birth to an age the authority may require by rule.

Sec. 3. 20-A MRSA §11478, sub-§3-A is enacted to read:

3-A.__Successor participants.__A participant may designate another person as successor owner of the account in the event of the death or disability of the participant.

SUMMARY

This bill makes the following changes to the laws governing the Maine College Savings Program.

1. It clarifies that money in the Maine College Savings Program Fund may be used by the Finance Authority of Maine to