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Wells Fargo Will Continue to Manage Wisconsin College Savings Program

Posted on: Thursday, 22 December 2005, 21:00 CST

By Doris Hajewski, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Dec. 23--Wells Fargo Funds Management will continue to manage EdVest, Wisconsin's college savings program, the state Department of Administration said Thursday.

Wells Fargo inherited the management duties from Strong Capital Management when Wells Fargo acquired the Menomonee Falls-based investment company a year ago. The current contract expires at the end of April.

The state solicited proposals for the contract in October. Wells Fargo won the bid over Oppenheimer Funds Inc. of New York and Upromise Investments Inc. of Needham, Mass., according to Michael Wolff, finance programs administrator for the Wisconsin Department of Administration.

The new contract is expected to save investors millions of dollars in fees over the five-year life of the contract.

The current $10 annual fee for the EdVest accounts will be removed, the cost of buying A shares and C shares through investment advisers will be reduced, and annual management fees charged by Wells Fargo will go down, Wolff said.

The reductions in charges will take effect by May 1 at the latest, Wolff said. The new contract may start earlier if both the state and Wells Fargo agree, he said.

The EdVest College Savings Program started in 1997 and was expanded in May 2001 to include mutual fund investments. Also in 2001, the state started offering the Tomorrow's Scholar program, which is marketed principally outside of Wisconsin through financial advisers. Together, the programs have more than 200,000 account holders with assets of more than $1.5 billion.

Earnings on money invested in college savings programs like EdVest are free from federal and state taxes when they are used for qualified higher education expenses. In addition, parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and great-grandparents can deduct up to $3,000 per eligible child from their taxable Wisconsin income each year.

The deduction also is available to an individual contributing to an account for his or her own use.

Application forms and information are available by calling 1-888-338-3789 or at www.edvest.com .

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Copyright (c) 2005, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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WFC,

Source: The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

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