Senate Approves Bill On Education-Savings Accounts

By Joetta L. Sack

Washington

The Senate passed a bill to expand education-savings accounts late last week, forwarding an election-year priority for Republicans that faces a firewall of resistance from the White House.

The chamber passed the measure 61-37 on March 2, and the Republican-controlled House is expected to consider it later this year. But President Clinton has vetoed similar legislation twice in the past two years, and Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley has urged him to do so again if the need arises.

Under the bill, S 1134, families could contribute up to $2,000 a year to an education-savings account that would earn tax- free interest. Parents could draw on the account for a wide array of K-12 and higher education expenses, including private school tuition, uniforms,...