What new bill has Sen. Bernie introduced?
Sen. Bernie Sanders, will make wall street pay for all. D-Va, and Rep. Pramila Jayapal, DW, unveiled the College for All plan Wednesday, legislation that would make college education accessible for millions and provide working-class Family members provide additional support.
“In the richest country in the history of the world, higher education should be the right of all, not the privilege of the few,” Sanders said in a statement. “If we have the American people’s standard of living, we must have the most educated workforce.”
The proposal comes amid an ongoing debate about writing off student loan debt. President Joe Biden said he would support $10,000 of federal debt forgiveness per borrower; he has now directed his education secretary to prepare a report on his legal authority to forgive up to $50,000. “While President Biden can and should immediately write off the student debt of millions of borrowers, Congress must ensure that working families never have to take out these huge loans, primarily for higher education,” Jayapal said. Americans currently have more than $1.7 trillion in student loan debt, 93 per cent of which the federal government guarantees.
What does all the new plan consist of?
The plan provides free education to all students in community colleges and public business schools. For students from families earning less than $125,000 a year, tuition fees will be waived at four-year public colleges and universities and at public and private heritage black colleges and universities and other institutions that serve minorities. A $10 billion annual federal investment will be established to provide continued student support at these underfunded institutions.
Will your student loan debt be forgiven?
The bill would double the maximum amount of Pell Grants from $6,495 to $12,990 for the 2021-22 school year, make so-called “Dreamers” eligible for loans and ensure students can use the money to organize their lives and other non-profit school activities. Spend. It will also increase funding for programs that help underprivileged children, people with disabilities and first-generation college students.
“It is completely unacceptable that hundreds of thousands of bright young Americans are not pursuing higher education every year, not because they are not qualified, but because their families do not have enough money,” Sanders said. The legislation proposed by Sanders and Jayapal represents a significant investment in education and comes at a cost. The bill says the federal government will pay for 75 per cent of the cost of free college in public schools, and the states will pay for the rest.
The federal government’s share will increase to 90% in an economic downturn. In addition, the bill proposes that the government pay for college for free by imposing a financial transaction tax on Wall Street, as in previous plans presented by Sanders and others. The Wall Street Speculation Tax Act provides a 0.5% tax on stock trading, a 0.1% commission on bond trading, and a 0.005% commission on derivatives transactions. According to a brief report, this will bring $2.4 trillion over the next decade.
A tax on Wall Street to pay for it
This tax has been criticized in the past. Business groups have spoken out against it, and research has shown that it could harm middle-class Americans. However, those who support the tax see it as a draw.
“Thirteen years ago, the middle class bailed out Wall Street at a time of need, even when the middle class struggled,” the report said in summary. “Now it’s Wall Street’s turn to rebuild the struggling middle class by paying a modest financial transaction tax so that anyone in America who wants to graduate can do so without going into debt.”