Treasurer Stacy Garrity Celebrates PA ABLE $200 Million Milestone with CRI, Promotes New Benefit for CRI Employees

Erie, PA - Pennsylvania Treasurer Stacy Garrity marked the achievement of PA ABLE (Achieving a Better Life Experience) Savings Program surpassing $200 million in assets during her visit to Community Resources for Independence (CRI), where she announced that the organization will begin offering PA ABLE as an employee benefit. This move expands access to a program that helps Pennsylvanians with disabilities save for everyday expenses and long-term goals without jeopardizing critical benefits such as Supplemental Security Income and Medicaid.

"PA ABLE continues to give Pennsylvanians with disabilities greater opportunities to save and plan for the future. I'm thrilled that PA ABLE account owners have over $200 million saved for the future, and it's great to see employers, like CRI, offering the program to its workforce to make a real difference for their employees and their families."

CRI is a non-profit organization dedicated to reducing barriers and helping individuals with disabilities live independently through advocacy and skills training, information, referral and transition assistance. By offering PA ABLE as a benefit, CRI is further advancing its mission and strengthening financial empowerment for employees with disabilities.

"Many of CRI's employees are people with disabilities or have family members with disabilities. The PA-ABLE account is an advantageous opportunity to save money for a wide range of disability-related expenses. CRI is pleased to partner with the PA Treasury to share the advantages of a PA-ABLE account."

Passed in 2014, Federal ABLE legislation authorized states to create tax-advantaged savings programs for individuals with disabilities. Pennsylvania enacted PA ABLE in 2016 through legislation championed by Sen. Lisa Baker and the first PA ABLE account was opened in 2017.

"We started the PA ABLE program with the purpose of giving families with a member with disabilities an opportunity to improve their circumstances by saving for the future. This approach is proving effective and popular. The decision to open the program to veterans is timely and consistent with our commitment to the individuals who provided dedicated service to Pennsylvania and our nation. State Treasurer Stacy Garrity has put priority on making PA ABLE accessible to more citizens, a highly commendable effort."

Today, PA ABLE, the fifth largest ABLE program in the country, serves more than 12,000 account owners with assets exceeding $200 million. Account owners have withdrawn more than $76 million to cover qualified disability-related expenses such as housing, groceries, healthcare, transportation, education and assistive technology over the life of the program.

While CRI is a non-profit organization, for-profit Pennsylvania employers who make matching contributions to their employees' PA ABLE accounts can take advantage of a state tax credit. The credit is 25 percent of an employer's matching contributions up to $500 per employee per tax year, providing both meaningful support to workers and a financial benefit to the employer.

PA ABLE account owners may contribute up to $20,000 annually, with higher limits available for eligible employed individuals. Contributions of up to $19,000 are deductible from Pennsylvania state income tax, and earnings grow tax-free when used for qualified expenses.

Since taking office, Treasurer Garrity has reduced PA ABLE fees six times and expanded outreach efforts statewide. She also supported the federal ABLE Adjustment Act, which increased the age-of-onset eligibility from before age 26 to before age 46 - making millions more Americans, including one million veterans, eligible to open accounts as of January 2026.

To learn more about eligibility or to open an account, visit paable.gov, email [email protected] or call 855-529-2253.