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RELEASE: Franke: Save your back-to-school receipts to receive tax benefits

Wednesday, August 22, 2018

ST. PAUL PARK, MN – The cost of purchasing back-to-school supplies can quickly add up for families and Rep. Keith Franke, R-St. Paul Park, urges people to save receipts and take advantage of tax benefits that can provide some relief.

Minnesota has both a credit and a subtraction for education expenses. Both programs reduce the tax parents pay and could provide a larger refund when filing state income tax returns for 2018. Qualifications apply and expenses must be for children attending kindergarten through 12th grade at a public, private, or home school.

“I hope parents in our area will look into these tax benefits, and take the appropriate steps to help make school shopping more affordable,” said Franke. “Any parents interested in the credit or the subtraction and have questions are welcome to contact my office; I’m happy to help.”

School supplies which qualify for the credit or subtraction include writing utensils, textbooks, musical instrument rentals, tutoring and computer hardware/educational software. Common items that do not qualify for the subtraction or credit include school lunches, uniforms and backpacks. Parents are encouraged to check the Department of Revenue website (http://www.revenue.state.mn.us) to determine which expenses qualify.

While the education subtraction is not subject to income limits, the credit is limited to households with incomes less than $37,500 for families with one to two children, $39,500 for families with three children, and adding $2,000 per child for families with four or more children. The Department of Revenue indicates that last year more than 37,500 families took advantage of the education credit, saving an average of $241. More than 186,000 families took advantage of the education subtraction.

In addition to visiting the Department of Revenue’s website, Franke encourages constituents who have questions about the credit or subtraction to contact him at rep.keith.franke@house.mn or by calling 651-296-4342.

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