Master Pooled Trust

Click Here for the 2009 Annual Report

The Arc of Texas Master Pooled Trust offers a way for people with disabilities to have more financial freedom. The freedom to buy the things they want and need...without worrying that their purchases might cause them to lose their government benefits.

The first and only trust fund of its kind in Texas, the Master Pooled Trust is designed to improve the quality of life for people with disabilities by providing financial resources for their supplemental wants and needs.

Government benefits such as Supplemental Security Income and Medicaid can provide for the primary living needs--such as food, housing, and basic medical care--of a person with a disability. However, these benefits won't pay for other needs such as education, medical supplies, insurance premiums, or telephone service, for example. Ironically, if a person with a disability receives a lump sum of money that could be used to pay for these supplemental items, he or she will most likely no longer be eligible for government benefits. The Arc of Texas Master Pooled Trust can make it possible for your family member to have both.

The Arc of Texas Master Pooled Trust

• Serves any Texas resident who meets the definition of a person with a disability under the Social Security Act
• Provides for the needs of people who have disabilities, while allowing them to remain eligible for government benefits such as Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income
• Frees families from learning Medicaid regulations
• Offers an affordable alternative to traditional bank trusts:
  • no minimum or maximum funding requirements
  • low enrollment costs
  • low annual consultation fees for funded accounts; no annual fees for non-funded accounts
• Is managed by The Arc of Texas, a nonprofit organization with over 50 years of experience in serving people with disabilities
• Simple and prompt disbursement procedures, with excellent customer service satisfaction ratings
• Can be funded with the person's own money or with money from a friend or family member
• Investments are professionally managed by our Trustee, JPMorgan Chase Bank, NA

Master Pooled Trust Staff

Chris Oglesby, J.D. Master Pooled Trust Manager
1-800-252-9729 or (512) 454-6694, ext. 105
coglesby@thearcoftexas.org
Chris Oglesby, an attorney, has been the manager of the Master Pooled Trust since 2001. Chris has been working with attorneys to set up new sub-accounts, communicating with families and beneficiaries regarding approval of checks for items and services to improve beneficiaries' lives, working with the Finance Committee and JPMorgan Chase Bank to insure the investments are secure, and speaking with families and professional groups about The Trust.

Dee West Master Pooled Trust Coordinator
1-800-252-9729 or (512) 454-6694, ext. 113
dwest@thearcoftexas.org
Dee is responsible for handling the day-to-day administration of disbursement requests, processing additional checks, and entering new joinder agreements.

Tamara Thomas Master Pooled Trust Assistant
1-800-252-9729 or (512) 454-6694, ext. 121
tthomas@thearcoftexas.org

2009 Legislative Session: New Law Relating to MPT

Upon request by Trust Staff, the Texas Chapter of NAELA (National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys; www.naela.org) drafted legislation which was sponsored by Rep. Will Hartnett as Texas House Bill 3080. The legislation passed and was signed by the Governor, making it more clear how to fund a Master Pooled Trust sub-account in cases falling under Section 867 of the Texas Probate Code relating to guardianships of incapacitated individuals. The new law makes it permissible for judges to place funds into a master pooled trust as an alternative to an individual court created trust pursuant to Texas Probate Code 867, and it will allow the MPT to serve more Texans with disabilities.