Sun Group Wealth Partners Launches Campaign Urging America's Fortune 500 Companies To Address National Student Debt And Higher Education Crisis Through Corporate 529 Education Savings Plans

IRVINE, Calif., Aug. 12, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Sun Group Wealth Partners, a premier full-service independent wealth management firm specializing in innovative and highly-customized retirement and financial planning solutions, together with its Campaign for Next Generation Employees, today announced a national movement aimed at making higher education more accessible to all working Americans, and addressing the ballooning national problem of excessive student debt.

The Campaign for Next Generation Employees, which has been launched as an open coalition for all concerned American individuals and families to join, was founded with one purpose:  To urge that all companies in the Fortune 500 – which represents the top 500 U.S. closely held and public corporations as ranked by their gross revenues and other adjustments made by Fortune magazine – adopt corporate-sponsored 529 plans as part of their regular employee benefits package.

The 529 plan is an investment vehicle in existence since 1996 under the federal tax code that enables individuals to grow savings on a tax-free basis until it is withdrawn for educational purposes. Increasingly utilized on an individual basis for financial planning in connection with future college tuition payments, the 529 plan, under the Campaign for Next Generation Employees' proposal, could also be subsidized or provided with a "match" for employee contributions by Fortune 500 companies, similar to current practices with 401 (k) retirement plans.

The campaign commenced today with the distribution of an open letter to each CEO of the Fortune 500, urging them to adopt corporate sponsored 529 plans as a standard part of their employee benefits offerings.

The Campaign for Next Generation Employees was founded by Winnie Sun, Managing Director of Sun Group Wealth Partners.

"As a financial planner as well as a parent, the issue of the inaccessibility of a college degree really troubled me. In our nation, student debt has swelled to the $1 trillion dollar mark, eclipsing both credit card and auto loan debt. Conversely, state funding for higher education has reached its lowest point in 25 years in 2011.* This 'perfect storm' means many hard-working families face financial ruin or bankruptcy if they choose to educate themselves and their children," said Ms. Sun, founder and managing partner of Sun Group Wealth Partners. She added that Americans with a college degree can typically earn more than $1,000,000 over the course of a lifetime than those who do not.*

"Today's higher education crisis, which is driven almost entirely by the tuition cost conundrum, has a very clear and simple solution: Encourage our nation's largest employers to set up corporate sponsored 529 plans for their employees. Setting these up are often free to the business, yet allow their workforce a tax-efficient way to plan for their family's future educational needs. They should be as ubiquitous as 401 (k) plans in any standard employee benefits packages," said Ms. Sun.

Ms. Sun concluded, "In addition, companies who do set up these plans may reap great rewards. They can attract top talent, foster a loyal work culture and can potentially see greater productivity and retention than those who do not, in addition to fostering a more skilled labor force in our nation."

The Campaign for Next Generation Employees noted that while it is beginning its outreach with America's Fortune 500 companies, its plan is to expand its focus to other qualified companies across the size spectrum.  Additionally, the campaign noted that leading companies across industry sectors have already offered 529 plans for their employees.

Individuals, businesses and other organizations interested in joining the campaign can visit: www.corporate529.com.

*The State Higher Education Executive Officers Association

*Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce

About the Campaign for Next Generation Employees
There is a crisis in the U.S. It not only affects us, but the well-being of generations to come. In today's global economy, getting a job and sustaining a household without a college degree is difficult. There is a "Perfect Storm" effect, though, of swelling education debt coupled with rapidly contracting government aid for education. Many American families face financial ruin because they choose to educate themselves and their children beyond high school. Others forgo college, because of the staggering costs and shut out most meaningful and lucrative job opportunities.

Campaign for Next Generation Employees was founded by Sun Group Wealth Partners to address this crisis. All businesses, specifically our country's largest employers, the Fortune 500 companies, can be part of reversing this negative trend by establishing a corporate-sponsored 529 plan for their employees. In most cases it is free, or of a minimal cost to the business. For additional information, please visit www.corporate529.com.

Securities offered through LPL Financial, Member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advice offered through Sun Group Wealth Partners, a registered investment advisor. Sun Group Wealth Partners and Winnie Sun are separate entities from LPL Financial.

Media Contacts:

Jessica Caris / Matthew Griffes 
Haven Tower Group, LLC
646 594 3855 / 206 402 5853
jcaris@haventower.com or mgriffes@haventower.com

SOURCE Sun Group Wealth Partners