LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Officials with the Arkansas Treasurer John Thurston’s Office announced on Thursday that the state’s Arkansas Brighter Future 529 Plan has reached $1.5 billion in assets.

Officials said the Brighter Future 529 Plan is a tax-advantaged savings account designed to help achieve students’ educational goals. Arkansans with a 529 account may use the funds generated to help pay for tuition, books and housing at two- and four-year colleges or universities in the United States and abroad.

The savings can also help cover trade or technical school education and student loan payments. Earnings are tax-deferred, and withdrawals are tax-free, officials said.

Currently, the Brighter Future 529 Plan has 54,695 individual 529 accounts, officials said, with more than half of them being

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