leifw

We saw Heartbreak House by George Bernard Shaw tonight. Wow. I had no idea he was so good. The quote of the night:

Give me deeper darkness. Money is not made in the light.

That pretty much sums up how I feed about the ideal office place. Blinds drawn? Check. Lights off? Check. Computer monitor the brightest point in room? Check. Totally reinterpreting another era's social commentary for my own purposes? Check.

Perhaps you saw my post about the woes of Montana's 529 plan. Would you be willing to consider writing state officials to let them know how you feel?

Here's a sample letter that you can use.

Dear [State Official],

Montana has a 529 educational savings plan to help our families save for college. Unfortunately, a recent report by SavingForCollege.com found Montana's plan has the highest fees in the country. These fees add up in a major way, nearing $20,000 when saving enough for an MSU-Bozeman education. It's hard enough to save for our children's educations without being hindered by one of the most expensive plans in the country.

Please encourage the Board of Regents to investigate why their plan has the highest fees in the country.

Currently contributions to Montana's 529 plan are deductible from state taxes. Please also consider supporting legislation to extend that tax benefit to contributions to any 529.

Finally, please consider how we can keep the Board of Regents accountable in the future. Perhaps mandatory periodic reports comparing the fees and performance of Montana's plan to other plans are appropriate.

See http://montana529.info for more.

Thank you for considering this matter.

Sincerely,

[Your Name]
[Your Address]
[Your City, State ZIP]

To write to the governor, please use this form.

The email addresses of the regents are listed on this page.

To find email addresses for your state legislators, please use Project Vote Smart. On the left side of the page, you'll find a box to enter your zip code. Provided that they'll give contact information for your legislators and a bunch of other folks.

Thanks for thinking about writing. If you do, feel free to post a comment saying you did.