Free tuition for all University of Wisconsin students is unrealistic for the simple fact that it raises taxes in a state whose residents, if not thepoliticians, know that it is already on the high end on the tax scale.
We can accomplish the objective, which is to keep students in Wisconsin after graduation, however, with a much better and actually workable solution.
First, the state would make student loans available to any student enrolled in the UW or the technical college systems. The loans would be made at slightly above market yet fair rates (keep reading) and would be easily available through any participating loaninstitution.
The state would fund the loans from a variety of currently available funds or simply borrow the money. Upon graduation, or leaving the system, the student would receive an annual statement based on a long-term repayment schedule.
Let’s say 20 years, just for the sake of argument. Annual payments would be required or a person would be in default of theloan, so this would not be a free ride, but once again keep reading.
Finally, students would be able to deduct the interest portion of the loan from the bottom line on their state tax return. The net effect is that students would be able to attend UW or state technical campuses and would have 20 years to repay the state interest-free, as long as the student wasan employee in the state and paid state income tax.
The cost to the state would be the interest on the original loan. This brings me back to the above-market rate used to establish the loans. A student leaving the state would be repaying the state at a higher rate than the actual cost of the loan and thus subsidizing the loan of the student who remains in the state.
This is not a no-cost option, but exponentially less expensive than the free tuition option. It benefits all Wisconsin students not just a select few and it providesneeded new revenues to the university and tech systems in the state.
The incentive to remain in the state after graduation would be high and the real opportunity for our students to pursue a post-secondary education would be exceptional.
Verona City Councilman Kenneth Harwood is a sales and marketing executive for Conservancy Place, a multi-use development planned by Park Towne Corp. in Madison. He also is the former mayor of Neenah and a former local government liaison to the governor. Additional information is available at www.conservancyplace.com.
