Funny Numbers on the Cost of 529 Accounts

The NYT seems to be backsliding again in its commitment to put numbers in context. A NYT article on the prospects of tax reform threw around many big numbers which would almost certainly be meaningless to nearly all of its readers.

I will pick on one here, because it doesn't seem to make any sense. According to the article, President Obama's proposal to end the tax deductions for money placed in 529 accounts in future years would have saved the government $1 billion over the next decade. (The...