Published Thursday, January 3, 2008

Moms, dads and other adults can use credit card purchases to beef up children’s college savings accounts under an initiative state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias announced Wednesday.

The Bright Start Futuretrust MasterCard is “like a frequent-flier program geared toward college savers,” Giannoulias said in a telephone interview.

Similar to credit cards that allow their holders to accumulate “miles” or “points,” the Bright Start card directs 1 percent from every purchase into a Bright Start college savings account, he said. Some merchants offer additional rebates.

“If you’re using the card to purchase items you’d buy anyway, why not pay for college?” Giannoulias said. “Every little bit helps.”

The first-term Democratic treasurer touted another benefit for holders of the Bright Start credit card, which he said is unique to Illinois: When the card is used for the first time, $25 will be deposited into the cardholder’s Bright Start savings account.

The treasurer’s office oversees the $2.3 billion Bright Start College Savings Program, a state-sponsored plan through which families can save and invest money tax free for future college expenses.

“We’ve been trying to promote saving for college early on,” Giannoulias said. The new credit card program “was something that I wanted to do. I heard about other states having it.”

Georgia and Kentucky also have teamed up with Futuretrust, a MasterCard-linked college savings program, for similar credit card programs associated with college savings plans.

In Illinois, the credit card carries no annual fee, and the annual percentage rate ranges from 12.49 percent to 14.49 percent, according to Giannoulias’ office.

Futuretrust will track the credit card purchases of people who participate in the new Illinois program.

Rebate money will be swept into a cardholder’s designated Bright Start account on a quarterly basis after accumulating $25 in rebates. That will require making $2,500 in credit card purchases.

To apply for the Bright Start Futuretrust MasterCard, go online to www.brightstartsavings.com and click on the credit card icon. More information about Futuretrust and its merchant partners is available at www

.futuretrust.com.

In a news release, Giannoulias sounded a note of caution about using the credit card properly.

“This credit card should not be used to incur more debt or as a substitute for a family’s obligation to save for a child’s higher education,” he said. “It’s a supplement, not a replacement.”