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Here are my thoughts on the college debt crisis as I don't generally favor rejecting an idea without offering a counter idea:
1. Make payments on interest tax deductible with no cap and interest payments a tax credit. I'm open to making both a tax credit if that works better.
1. Make payments on interest tax deductible with no cap and interest payments a tax credit. I'm open to making both a tax credit if that works better.
2. Make those tax benefits retroactive. If someone wants to refile a relatively recent return to take advantage, let them.
3. Require higher education institutions to release ROI analysis for every major. How much do their grads typically make after graduation and how much will it cost to get the degree. All major selections will require a student to sign off that they've seen this information.
4. Offer businesses tax incentives to offer school debt repayment benefits to their employees.
5. Reduce federal spending to adjust for any decrease in revenue.
5. Reduce federal spending to adjust for any decrease in revenue.
6. Allow college debt to be addressed in bankruptcy. Colleges will be responsible for paying any reduction in an individual's debt as a result of bankruptcy. Perhaps this will encourage colleges to include things like personal finance in their gen Ed requirements.
This is to address a few points.
1. It's not a bailout. It's effectively being paid by those who took out the loans and those who benefit from them but it also offers relief for those struggling to pay off their loans.
1. It's not a bailout. It's effectively being paid by those who took out the loans and those who benefit from them but it also offers relief for those struggling to pay off their loans.
This also doesn't differ terribly far from the debt forgiveness idea which would be paid for in the end by taxpayers. It's just now that it's being paid specifically by the tax payers who took out the loans.
2. It holds colleges accountable. They need to make sure that students know what they're getting into before they sign on the dotted line. It also encourages colleges to keep costs low. Why go to school X when school Y clearly has a better ROI?
As a society and in education, we need to make a few changes as well. 1. Stop telling kids that if they don't go to college, they'll end up in the poor house. This was the message I heard from society nonstop growing up. It's a lie. Trade schools offer careers that pay well.
This addresses the price elasticity of college. The only reason tuition prices have skyrocketed is because people are willing to pay it. If people weren't willing to pay it, colleges wouldn't charge it. This is ECON 101.
2. Stop judging people by what they do or whether or not they have a degree. It's arrogant. We have too many people who look down at those who do jobs that don't require a college education or didn't go for one reason or another. This also speaks to the price elasticity element.
3. Adjust high school education in a way where a person can graduate with more than a traditional diploma. Have a "with honors" type option that shows that someone is more than just a high school grad.
The reason for this is that in our efforts to get as many people to get their high school diploma, we've devalued the worth of a high school diploma. It's not hard at all to graduate from high school and the job market treats it as such, thus driving demand for higher education.
On a related note, I think we're starting to see the same with undergrad degrees. I feel like more and more positions are asking for masters degrees.
4. Employers need to start right sizing job listings. I see requirements for a college degree far too often. Is the person with a Shakespeare degree really better suited for a job that doesn't involve literature than someone who didn't go to college?
This is just a broad framework. I'm open to adjustments. I share it because I don't like rejecting ideas (college debt forgiveness) without offering a counter idea. As conservatives, we do that too often and it opens the door to be called heartless. We can do better.
