| (a) The Board shall administer and invest the assets
of the Program. The Board shall serve as the trustee of the assets
of the Program.
(b) The Board may delegate to duly appointed financial
institutions or plan manager(s) authority to act on behalf of the
Board in the investment and reinvestment of all or part of the assets
of the Program and may also delegate to those financial institutions
or plan manager(s) the authority to act on behalf of the Board in
the holding, purchasing, selling, assigning, transferring, or disposing
of any or all of the securities and investments in which the funds
in the ABLE account have been invested, as well as the proceeds from
the investment of those funds.
(c) The Board may select one or more financial institutions
to serve as custodian of all or part of the Program's assets.
(d) In the Board's discretion, the Board may contract
with one or more financial institutions to serve as plan manager and
to invest the money in ABLE accounts.
(e) In exercising or delegating investment powers and
authority, the Board shall exercise ordinary business care and prudence
under the facts and circumstances prevailing at the time of actions
or decisions related to investment of assets of the Texas ABLE Program.
A member of the Board is not liable for any action taken or omitted
with respect to the exercise of, or delegation of, those powers and
authority if the member discharged the duties of the member's position
in good faith and with the degree of diligence, care, and skill that
a prudent person acting in a like capacity and familiar with those
matters would use in the conduct of an enterprise of a like character
and with like aims.
(f) As applicable, the Board shall adopt an investment
policy statement for the Program, set the asset allocation of the
Program, select the underlying investments of the Program, and the
Board shall promptly deposit and invest contributions, excluding any
excess contributions, and any earnings as directed by the participant.
No earnings or interest will accrue to an ABLE account before the
funds have been invested.
(g) For investment purposes, the Board may pool funds,
or authorize the pooling of funds, from ABLE accounts with other funds
administered by the Board. If funds from the ABLE accounts are pooled
with other funds administered by the Board, the Board shall track,
monitor, report, and record separately, all investment activity related
to the ABLE accounts, including any earnings, fees, or charges or
expenses associated with each ABLE account.
(h) A participant may direct the investment of any
contributions or any earnings on contributions only to the extent
allowed by Internal Revenue Code, §529A.
(i) No investment, financial, or benefits advice is
offered to participants, eligible individuals, eligible members of
the family, parents, designated beneficiaries, or their guardians
or fiduciaries acting on their behalf, from the State of Texas, the
comptroller, the Board, the Texas ABLE Program, the Texas ABLE Advisory
Committee, or from their employees, vendors, or agents, nor do they
assume any responsibility for the performance of any investment option.
The decision to enroll in the Program, the selection of investment
options, and the suitability of such options is entirely the responsibility
of the participant.
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