As an incentive to encourage Californians to give their children something lasting and meaningful, State Treasurer Phil Angelides has arranged with Amazon.com to offer $50 gift certificates to residents who open a Golden State ScholarShare Account by the end of the year. ScholarShare offers California residents a tax-advantaged savings program when a college savings account is open in a child's name; earnings are exempt from federal and California income taxes if the funds in the account are used to pay for college tuition, board, room, fees, supplies, or other expenses.

"There are few gifts as valuable as a college education," said Angelides. He went on: "Opening ScholarSchare accounts for the children you love is a flexible and easy way to take advantage of tax benefits to save for their higher education."

The ScholarShare program in California began in 1999 and today has more than 125,000 accounts and $1 billion in assets. More information about the program can be found at www.scholarshare.com or by calling (877) 728-4338.

Tip:  If you are looking for money to pay for your child's college education, did you know that there are numerous funding programs available for that purpose, in addition to 529 savings plans? And, most of those funding opportunities offer "free money," which doesn't need to be paid back! Find out about this funding in Reference Service Press's line of award-winning financial aid directories for undergraduates, particularly Kaplan Scholarships.