Congress shall create legislation that will provide a maximum $5,000 tax credit for legal fees associated with establishing legal guardianship for a child or adult with disabilities to be effective at age 18 or beyond. Said tax credit shall also be available for creation of an “Irrevocable Third-Party Special Needs Trust.”

The tax credit will be available to the payer, which may be the mother, father, sister, brother, uncle, aunt, cousin, grandparent or legal guardian of the beneficiary.  The social security number of the disabled person shall track the accrued tax credits awarded on his behalf.

The tax credit is preferred, since lower income families may not have enough tax-deductible expenses to allow the incentive that the program is designed to create.

The Federal government has a long history of creating tax incentives for public programs that assist individuals in providing for their future well-being, and that personal responsibility reduces the burden on the states for providing such relief.

Most noticeably are retirement plans of all sorts, which provide either tax-deductible contributions or tax-free distributions.  This long-term savings program enables a better quality of life for the retiree, and reduces dependence on the Social Security system.

Educational IRAs, 529 Plans and Pre-Paid College programs sponsored by various states allow parents to save and contract for secondary education for their children.  This education often allows higher-paid careers for the student, adding to the tax roles of the government.

Parents of children and adults with disabilities have personal challenges far in excess of those with “typical” healthy children.  Supports for services, such as special education, occupational, physical and speech therapies, vary widely from state-to-state.  As a result, costs associated with these programs are often borne by the parents, and yet these specialized services hope to create and develop skills within the person with disabilities, and may allow for a lesser amount of assistance later in life, and less dependence on supportive government and non-profit assistance.

At age 18, a person with significant disabilities may not have the ethical or judgmental abilities to make critical decisions for themselves.  They may not have the capacity to enter into contracts, utilize money, or make personal health and legal decisions.  They may not have the ability to make informed decisions in voting or marriage.

At age 18, parents of the disabled are encouraged to seek limited or plenary guardianship for their child, in order to better safeguard the future for their loved one.  Many parents, having provided for a plethora of services specific to the child with a disability, may be hard-pressed to afford the $2500 to $5000 costs associated with guardianship proceedings.  With this incentive, parents may take the initiative to complete the guardianship process, thereby reducing the costs of guardian ad litem programs nationwide.

In addition, the disabled person, in order to qualify for Medicaid or Supplemental Security Income, may not have more than $2,000. of personal savings.  They must be impoverished to qualify for the only medical insurance they might qualify for through Medicaid.  The Special Needs Trust was created as a way for parents and others to contribute to a source of funds for benefit of the person with disabilities.  This money is neither owned nor controlled by the person with disabilities, and therefore allows the beneficiary to qualify for governmental benefits.  The financial contribution of the parents helps provide a better quality of life than just the basics as offered through government programs

The legal fees to establish Guardianship or a Third–Party Special Needs Trust often run from $2,000 to $5,000, and these costs may be an obstacle for parents to establish guardianship or create the trust, which ultimately provides protections, supports and quality of life subsidies for benefit of the disabled person.

If interested to support our petition, please download, sign, date and mail your statement of support to:

You may also make a charitable donation to Prosperity Life Planning for this special purpose.

Click here to download our Special Needs Tax Credit Statement of Support