Ready, Willing, And ABLE: 14K Residents Open Tax-Advantage Accounts For People With Disabilities

By Christine Sexton, Florida Phoenix

August 15, 2025

Jenn Sikora recalls the night in 2005 in her northern Virginia home talking with a group of parents of children with Down syndrome. They discussed ways they could help ensure their children’s future as they aged.

That’s when “one of the dads” remarked that he’d established a tax-advantaged savings plan for one daughter’s college education but wasn’t sure what he could do to help his second daughter with Down syndrome through life.

“She might go into a postsecondary college program, she might need help with housing, or she might need assistance with transportation or with jobs, and I just don’t know what that is. But, as a dad, I want to be able to provide for what her needs are later on,” Sikora recalls the man saying.

“And that’s really how ABLE got started.”

“ABLE” is the Stephen Beck Jr. Achieving a Better Life Experience Act, which allows individuals with disabilities diagnosed before age 26 and their families to save up to $19,000 per year for future expenses. Congress approved it in 2014. In July 2015, Florida created ABLE United, a registered not-for-profit and direct support organization of the Florida Prepaid College Board.

Sikora — whose son, Sean, has Down syndrome — had to lobby the issue immediately. She was a former staffer for U.S. Rep. Bill McCollum and wasn’t reluctant to tackle tax policy. She also had connections. Her neighbor at the time was John Ariale, chief of staff to then-Jacksonville Republican U.S. Rep. Ander Crenshaw.

So she pled her case to Ariale that parents of children with disabilities should be able to defer money into tax-free accounts to help cover their children’s needs as they aged. And, perhaps more importantly, the savings accounts shouldn’t trigger the loss of Social Security income or Medicaid benefits when the children turn 18.

“We said, ‘Look, we want to save for our kids, and we don’t want to impact their benefit eligibility later on in life. What do you think?'” Sikora told the Florida Phoenix. “And [Ariale] said, ‘I can’t believe that you’re not already able to do this.’ ”

140K, $130M

ABLE United announced Thursday that 14,000 account holders in Florida have saved a combined total of more than $130 million. The announcement coincides with the second annual national ABLE Savings Day, created to raise awareness of this opportunity.

“Reaching $130 million in savings shows that Floridians are embracing ABLE accounts as a game-changing disability financial planning tool,” said John Finch, director of ABLE United.

Finch estimates that this represents about 3% of the individuals in Florida who could qualify for and have enough discretionary funds to invest in an ABLE account.

The National Association of State Treasurers estimates that nationally, more than 214,000 Americans with disabilities have collectively saved $2.6 billion in ABLE accounts.

The accounts can be used for various expenses, such as assistive technology, education, housing, transportation, health care, and more. Enrollment is free, there are no monthly fees, and savings grow tax-free.

More opportunities & more of a necessity

With nearly $1 trillion in health care cuts looming in the next decade, mostly through Republican legislation slashing Medicaid, the savings accounts may prove more necessary than ever. Medicaid is a health care safety net for the poor, elderly, and disabled people.

Although the “One Big Beautiful” law makes those deep cuts in Medicaid and health spending, the new law also ups eligibility for ABLE accounts to age 46, effective Jan. 1, opening the program to military veterans, plus people diagnosed with multiple sclerosis or lupus, or who suffer from traumatic brain injuries or have been diagnosed with mental health disorders.

“We have a lot of work to do. And I think with this age adjustment, it’s going to help expand that,” Finch said.

Former Florida Agency for Persons with Disabilities Executive Director turned lobbyist Jim DeBeaugrine said hard work isn’t new for the Florida family members and advocates who have championed the ABLE accounts.

“I’m especially proud of the role that Florida played in establishing this program nationally. Florida family members and self-advocates worked tirelessly behind the scenes for years in the hall of the U.S. and Florida capitols to make this program a reality.”

Sikora now lives in Orlando, far from the northern Virginia home where a cadre of parents initially met to discuss their special-needs children and how to best provide for them. Instead of lobbying on Capitol Hill, she is an ambassador for ABLE United.

“I’ve been talking about ABLE accounts for so long. It’s part of my DNA,” she said.

The Florida Phoenix, a nonprofit news site that’s free of advertising and free to readers, covers state government and politics through a mix of in-depth stories, briefs, and social media updates on the latest events, editorial cartoons, and progressive commentary. The Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit supported by grants and a coalition of donors and readers.