Every month you can listen to the Embracing Diversity show on Radio DaBang 99.5 FM. This month DJ BigNate, Mrs. Thelma Scott and Attorney Filis had special guests Giset King, Max Power with Agape the Koala, and Kathy Tatum.
Giset King with Cafe Azul is hosting Tools for Caregivers of Individuals with Autism March 21, 2020 at 114 Eastwood St. from 10 am to 2 pm.
Wow! I was interviewed on the Adriana Beasley podcast “Conversations That Inspire” talking about Legal Life Planning. Many families with children with special needs have experiences that are similar to mine and to Adriana’s. Even though it seems as though so much of your life is out of your control, you do have the power to set your family’s course for the future with legal life planning. If you have a child with special needs who is approaching adulthood, now is the time to contact Filis Law Firm for a free 30-minute consultation about Guardianship, SDMAs, Special Needs Trusts, and other legal documents to protect your family’s future.
You have found my article, but the Filis Law Firm website is not the only site you should look at as a reliable source of information for families with children with special needs. Continue your research. You have access to information, now what will you do with it?
Acquire knowledge and turn it into wisdom. You have at your fingertips information to assist you in maximizing the protection of your family. Now start doing something. You may already be taking some of these action steps, such as:
Protecting your child at school by attending Special Education ARD meetings and thoughtfully contributing to your child’s IEP.
Protecting your child’s future by getting him or her countless treatments from doctors and therapists that are designed to help to put your child on a better pathway to achieving life goals.
Protecting your family’s financial future by working with an attorney and a financial advisor for purposeful estate planning.
Filis Law Firm has a list of Action Steps designed to assist families with children with special needs. These Action Steps have been collected by Leona E. Filis, owner of Filis Law Firm, based on what Leona has discovered during her life journey with her son. We will publish one step at a time.
STEP ONE: Sign up your child with special needs on the Interest Lists for Medicaid Waiver Programs and look into other government benefits such as SSI, Medicaid, SSD, and Medicare. Take ten (10) minutes today and call 1-877-438-5658 to put your child on the Interest Lists.
Many parents with children with special needs consider adding a Supplemental Needs Trust (“SNT”) to their Estate Plan. Using a SNT to receive assets and money from a parent’s estate is how many parents try to avoid disqualifying their child from receiving government benefits. For Supplemental Security Income (“SSI”) eligibility, applicants must be a U.S. citizen or national (or one of the limited categories of aliens), and over 65 years old, blind, or disabled, with limited income and resources.
To keep the child’s income and resources low in non-existent for benefits qualification, selection of the appropriate Trust is crucial. There are three types of special needs trusts to options to evaluate.
Master Pooled – The Arc of Texas can offers their services for a Master Pooled Trust (click here for more info).
Another type of SNT is a 1st Party or Self-Settled SNT. This is typically used when a disabled individual receives a personal injury settlement or child support. The funds of the 1st Party SNT after termination are subject to a claim of reimbursement by Medicaid Estate Recovery Program (government payback).
The most commonly obtained SNT is a 3rd Party Supplemental Needs Trust. When setting up Estate Plans, parents of children with special needs can, in their Last Will and Testament, can provide for long-term care of their child by leaving inheritance to the Trustee of the 3rd Party SNT. The parents are both the settlors/grantors, and initial trustees.
Some individuals wish to avoid probate, but are unsure of how to fund their child’s SNT. Many parents turn to life insurance for financing the years of care their child will require after both parents have passed.
As a rule, you should coordinate between the attorney drafting the SNT, the agent writing up the life insurance policy, and your accountant or financial advisor who should determine whether the estate plan is advisable for tax purposes.
For most people, the SNT remains unfunded during the lives of the parents/settlors, and as the trustees, the parents have no responsibilities or owe any duties to the Trust.
QUESTION: Do you want to prohibit the SNT from owning life insurance on the life of the parents/settlor?
Yes. The SNT agreement should be written so that the Trust will not be allowed to own a life insurance on the life of the Settlor.
Question: If the 3rd Party SNT is funded, is it a Qualified Disability Trust?
To meet the criteria to be considered a Qualified Disability Trust (“QDisT”), the SNT must be irrevocable, for the sole benefit of the individual with a disability under the age of 65, whose disability is as defined for purposes of SSI and/or SSDI programs. Have your accountant look at the deemed exemption of $4,150. This exemption amount is allowed in full and is not subject to phaseout in 2025 under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.
Question: What is a grantor trust and what are the tax benefits?
A Grantor Trust, as defined by the Social Security Administration, is a !st Party or Self-Settled trust where the Grantor/Settlor is also the sole beneficiary of the trust.
Do you have a child in public school? Is your child receiving the best education possible? How is your child’s school campus? Are there enough qualified teachers, paraprofessionals, and therapists? What are your thoughts about tying school funds to STAR test results?
Now is the time to call, not email, your state senators and representatives and tell them your thoughts and concerns about your child’s education.
I had an opportunity at a Civil Association meeting January 15th to see SBISD Superindendent Muri and Minda Caesar, Trustee. At the meeting, we learned that the Bond passed November 2017 by voters provided $898.4 million to replace or improve schools in Spring Branch. Work towards new buildings, increased safety and security, and acquiring upgraded classroom equipment has already begun. For more details, click https://www.springbranchisd.com/about/bond-2017
What is going on in Austin regarding our 5.4 million Texas students? The 86th Texas Legislature begun this month and will continue until May 27th. The Houston Chronicle’s January 10th article “Texas House Speaker Bonnen makes the case to conservatives to beef up education funding” describes why we as Texans need to focus on our children’s educational needs. Although Texas has more high school seniors graduating, our fourth graders have difficulty in certain subjects, and dropped to No. 46 in national rankings for reading. Voice your opinion as to how this problem can be addressed.
We have a Texas Commission on Public School Finance who submitted a report in December last year with about thirty recommended improvements. Both the House and Senate have their proposals, including a pay raise for teachers. I encourage parents to read about the proposals and call your representatives. As of January 16, 2019, the Texas House and Senate are about $3 billion apart on proposals for public education spending.
Contact John Cornyn’s DC office at 202-224-2934; Ted Cruz’s DC office at 202-224-5922 and look at https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/TX#representatives
for more information to find your Representative and their phone number.
When I read articles on parent websites that talk about “me time” I chuckle and think to myself, if only they knew. If only they knew that during the holidays, when my ten year old son, who is Autistic and has ADHD, is home with me, with no school schedule to adhere to, it takes about one and a half to two hours to get him dressed and out the door.
How does one take “me time” when one is constantly nudging their child to perform regular tasks. I decided to work on my pessimistic attitude about my ability to have a jolly time during the holiday break. I know my son and I know I need to be realistic.
Let’s start with declining some invitations. Or if we really must attend a party or event, we just pop in for a short visit. There may be some offended people who cross our path during this break, but I need to focus on my son and myself.
Are we going to attend every holiday party we are invited to? No.
If we do make it to a party, are we going to leave early? Probably, unless trampolines are involved.
Honestly, we have been averaging thirty minutes per party/outing, before my son is uncomfortable and truly needs to leave. Even church service yesterday was cut short at around thirty minutes, instead of the usual one hour. For my son, there were too many differences in the service, too many people in the pews, and Sunday school only held his interest for five minutes.
Given that I know that when I ask my son to get dressed at 9 am, it will most likely be 11 am before we are ready to leave the house, I have decided that I am not going to spend two hours begging my son to get dressed. During part of that begging-free time, I will allocate a few minutes to the new me time. Now that I am thinking about it, we will probably spend the next couple of days at the house, in PJs, eating my son’s favorite foods – pancakes and popcorn, and watching movies.
Happy holidays! 
For all the new parents of babies and toddlers diagnosed with chronic illness or a disability such as Autism, one of the first things you should do is sign your child up for support and services with your State and local authority. Years ago, for my child, I contacted the Department of Aging and Disabilities (DADS, now see Texas Health and Human Services Commission) and Mental Health and Mental Retardation Authority (MHMRA, now known as Harris Center).
Client Education
My first reaction to receiving information about the Interest Lists for Medicaid Waiver Programs was one of disappointment.
I was certain that my household income would disqualify my son for benefits. I was wrong. The requirement for low or no income that you typically associate with Medicaid is waived for most of these programs.
If you have not already done so, please call 1-877-438-5658 to add your child to the Medically Dependent Children’s Program (MDCD) and Community Living Assistance and Support Services (CLASS) Interest Lists.
For those of our parents whose kids have spent a couple of days in a nursing facility, and is medically fragile, you may wish to look into the MDCP Rider 28 if your child is returning home. Talk to your child’s doctor about Form 2406, Physician Recommendation for Length of Stay in a Nursing Facility.
For more information, contact The Filis Law Firm at 713-462-1777 or search for Medicaid Waiver Programs on the Houston Special Needs Attorneys website.
To Parents with Children with Special Needs – Have you opened your child’s ABLE savings account yet? Is your child working?
The IRS released the following at https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-reminds-those-with-disabilities-of-new-able-account-benefits
WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service wants to remind those with disabilities that the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (2017) made major changes to Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) accounts. Eligible individuals may now put more money into their ABLE account and also roll money from their qualified tuition programs (529 plans) into their ABLE accounts. And certain contributions made to ABLE accounts by low- and moderate-income workers may now qualify for the Saver’s Credit.
ABLE accounts are designed to help people with disabilities and their families save and pay for disability-related expenses. Though contributions are not deductible, distributions, including earnings, are tax-free to the designated beneficiary if used to pay qualified disability expenses. These expenses can include housing, education, transportation, health, prevention and wellness, employment training and support, assistive technology and personal support services and other disability-related expenses.
Normally, contributions totaling up to the annual gift-tax exclusion amount, currently $15,000, may be made to an ABLE account each year for the benefit of an eligible person with a disability, known as a designated beneficiary. Starting in 2018, if the beneficiary works, the beneficiary can also contribute part, or all, of their income to their ABLE account.
This additional contribution is limited to the poverty-line amount for a one-person household. For 2018, this amount is $12,140 in the continental U.S., $13,960 in Hawaii and $15,180 in Alaska. The designated beneficiary is not, however, eligible to make this additional contribution if their employer contributes to a workplace retirement plan on their behalf.
Also starting in 2018, ABLE account beneficiaries can qualify for the Saver’s Credit based on contributions they make to their ABLE accounts. Up to $2,000 of these contributions may qualify for this special credit designed to help low- and moderate-income workers. Claimed on Form 8880, Credit for Qualified Retirement Savings Contributions, this credit can reduce the amount of tax a person owes or increase their refund.
Finally, some funds may now be rolled into an ABLE account from the designated beneficiary’s own 529 plan or from the 529 plan of certain family members.
For more information about ABLE accounts and other tax reform changes visit IRS.gov/taxreform.
Filis Law Firm just made a $100 donation to S.A.F.E. Diversity Communities. You too can help make a difference in a high student’s life by making a donation to help him or her go to college.
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November 27th, 2018
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As the holiday season brings cash flowing to retail businesses, non-profits can get in on the action thanks to #GivingTuesday. Participate today by donating to S.A.F.E. Diversity Communities as we embody and empower diversity through our unique platform and approach. Thanks to supporters like you we have been able to promote cultural diversity and a safe community for many Houstonians, and if you continue to support us we can continue to educate and spread love and positivity. Join the team and donate today.
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Thank you Mr. Mike Khan Founder/CEO of Radio Dabang 99.5 FM for making a generous $500 donation.
http://www.safediversitycommunities.org/full-donation-page.html
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Thank you Radio Da Bang and Ms. Thelma Scott!
I will be co-hosting with Ms. Scott once a month leading up to the fabulous 5th Annual Unique Blue Carpet Scholarship Awards Gala May 3, 2019. We are trying to get funds to high school students to enable them to go to college.
If you know a high school senior who wants an opportunity to earn a $1000 scholarship, tune in to the Embracing Diversity Radio Show at 99.5FM or or click this link for more information on the S.A.F.E. Diversity Communities website.
