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Dear Friends and Neighbors,
The summer has flown by and back-to-school season is already upon us! I've put together some helpful reminders and information for families as kids get ready for the new school year. Keep reading to learn more.
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Executive Summary
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K-12 Education Credit and Subtraction
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Student Loan Information
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Articles on Cell Phone Use in Schools
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K-12 Education Credit and Subtraction
Remember to save your receipts on school supply purchases to claim valuable K-12 tax benefits when filing your taxes next year. Two tax benefits can help families pay for education-related expenses: the refundable K-12 Education Credit (income limits apply) and the K-12 Education Subtraction (no income limits).
Most expenses for educational instruction or materials qualify, including:
- Paper
- Pens and notebooks
- Textbooks
- Rental or purchases of educational equipment such as musical instruments
- Computer hardware (hotspots, modems, and routers) and educational software (up to $200 for the subtraction and $200 for the credit)*
- After-school tutoring and educational summer camps taught by a qualified instructor
*Taxpayers who are not required to file an income tax return must do so in order to claim a refund for any eligible education credit.
In order to qualify for the K-12 Education Credit, families are subject to income limits:
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Household Income for the K-12 Education Credit
| Number of qualifying children in K-12 |
Household income must be less than |
| 1 or 2 |
$76,000 |
| 3 |
$79,000 |
| More than 3 |
$79,000 plus $3,000 for each additional child |
There are no income limits to qualify for the education subtraction. Most parents qualify. Parents can claim the K-12 Subtraction for tuition paid to private schools or college courses used to satisfy high school graduation requirements.
To learn more about the K-12 Education Credit and Subtraction, check out this helpful video.
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Student Loan Information
After three years of paused student loans, repayments are set to resume on September 1, with payments being due for most borrowers on October 1. This 42-month pause started during the early days of the pandemic in March 2020 and was extended seven times. Experts believe this pause has cost over $200 billion.
The Federal Student Aid office has information on how to prepare for the restart of student loan payments. Learn more about what you need to do to prepare and find the answers to frequently asked questions here.
There are still options available as borrowers prepare to make these payments. The Federal Student Aid Office has also implemented temporary flexibilities, a new income-driven repayment plan, and multiple new pathways for loan forgiveness. The National Conference of State Legislatures put together a helpful guide on student loan payments, which I highly recommend borrowers read here.
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Articles on Cell Phone Use in Schools
As you all know, I am very concerned about the impact of social media on young people’s mental health and am carrying a bill to address social media companies’ use of algorithms to target young people with unsolicited content.
I try to keep up on research on this issue and recently read two articles that I have shared with school boards in our district as they prepare for the school year.
This Atlantic article, by researcher Jonathan Haidt, argues for ending student use of cell phones during school.
This Guardian article looks at a UNESCO recommendation to limit both cell phone and ALL screens in school. This second issue has been brought to me by parents who are frustrated by the number of hours even elementary students spend on screens during the school day. It seems that teachers became increasingly reliant on technology during the covid closures and some continue to teach by having kids on devices or looking at screens for many hours each day.
I know some parents are concerned about not being able to contact their student during the school day, but I think there are sensible solutions that can limit students’ cell phone access during instructional time that will help improve students’ mental health and their academic achievement.
If you do not know your school’s cell phone policy, please contact your local school to find out what it is and how you can help prepare your children for going back to school. If your school doesn’t actively enforce their cell phone policy or if they don’t limit use, consider talking to your school board members about doing more to help students spend less time on their phones during the school day.
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Photos
Had an incredible opportunity to tour the IUOE Local 49 Training Center near Hinckley with my colleagues! It was a great opportunity to learn more about the incredible training they provide and how their career pathways can sync with high school, technical college and military training. I also got to drive a bulldozer & run an excavator! Our trainer was amazing - I should definitely not quit my day job! 😂
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Please Contact Me
Many of you have already been in touch to discuss your thoughts on the issues that matter most to you. Thank you for sharing your ideas! Please continue to contact me to discuss any matters to which I can be of assistance.
The best way to reach me while we are out of session is by email: rep.kristin.robbins@house.mn.gov. For occasional updates, you can follow my Facebook Page at @RepKristinRobbins. You can also leave a voicemail on my office number, 651-296-7806, which is checked multiple times/week.
Have a great weekend!
Kristin
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239 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Saint Paul, MN 55155
ph: 651.296.7806 |
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