Panel backs bill allowing state treasurer to join ABLE consortium to offer Idaho accounts

The Senate Health and Welfare Committee voted to send House Bill 26 to the Senate floor with a due‑pass recommendation after hearing testimony from State Treasurer Julie Ellsworth and several disability‑advocacy witnesses.

Treasurer Julie Ellsworth told the committee the bill would let the Idaho State Treasurer join an existing interstate consortium to operate an Idaho ABLE program rather than building a standalone state program. "By joining a consortium we will have as part of the contract the ability to reach out and do outreach in the state of Idaho," Ellsworth said, adding that shared administration would lower fees for account holders.

ABLE accounts (tax‑advantaged savings for people with disabilities) allow eligible Idahoans to save for disability‑related expenses without risking Medicaid or Supplemental Security Income. Ellsworth said Idaho currently lacks an in‑state ABLE program; account holders often open plans in other states and pay fees that benefit those states rather than Idaho. She said joining a consortium would reduce account management fees from the current range of about "45 to 59% basis points" to roughly "19 to 33% basis points," and would let Idaho receive a portion of fees to support outreach and financial‑literacy work. Ellsworth also said the bill establishes a voluntary advisory council whose members would "serve without honorarium compensation or expense reimbursement of any kind."

AARP Idaho's advocacy director, Lisa Anderson, testified in support, saying ABLE accounts help people with disabilities save without losing critical benefits. The Idaho Council on Developmental Disabilities, represented by Rochelle Tierney, also voiced support, saying an Idaho program would reduce fees for account holders and provide more oversight and outreach.

Several Idaho ABLE account holders and family members testified about practical problems with out‑of‑state accounts. Tara Rowe, an Idaho resident who said her account is held by the Tennessee state program, described administrative hurdles: she said withdrawing funds often requires the out‑of‑state treasurer to issue a mailed check rather than a simple transfer. "If Medicaid wanted to look at my bank account and see that I was over that asset cap, then I would automatically lose benefits," Rowe said, describing a $2,000 asset limit that complicates how people draw from ABLE funds and their regular bank accounts.

Other witnesses — including Ian Bott, Brittany Shipley and Dwight Johnson — described how ABLE accounts support independent living by covering medical equipment, transportation and household needs. Ellsworth noted the bill includes a state “clawback” provision she described as part of the draft language: funds remaining in an ABLE account at a person's death would be available for state recovery under the terms in the bill.

Committee members asked questions about the clawback, oversight of a consortium contract and the advisory council's unpaid status. Ellsworth said she would vet any consortium contract with legal analysis and that the state would not incur a direct fiscal impact from joining the consortium. Ellsworth also noted a change coming in federal law in 2026 that raises the age of eligibility for ABLE accounts and said the bill would help Idaho veterans and others who will newly qualify.

Senator Shippey moved and Senator Wintrow seconded sending House Bill 26 to the Senate floor with a due‑pass recommendation. The committee conducted a voice vote; the motion carried and the bill was sent to the floor. The committee record in the transcript shows the motion, the mover and seconder and an aye response; no roll‑call tally was recorded in the hearing transcript.

The bill now goes to the Senate floor for further consideration. Committee witnesses and the treasurer emphasized implementation details — the consortium contract, outreach provisions and the treatment of remaining funds — will determine practical effects if the bill advances.