The next stimulus package is likely to include tax cuts, and higher education groups also see an opportunity there to promote improvements for students and families. Broadening tax credits for college tuition is a USSA priority, Peoples said. Too many families fail to use the HOPE Scholarship or Lifelong Learning tax credits, and President-elect Obama has called for a $4,000 college tuition tax credit.
Many Capitol Hill lawmakers also like the idea of new tax credits. “Tax relief, done in a refundable form, can work hand-in-hand with Pell Grants to ensure more opportunity,” said Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas. Doggett sits on the Ways and Means Committee, which has jurisdiction over taxes, trade and social security.
Greater college affordability may soon gain visibility in the Senate, where the idea is among the first of 10 bills scheduled to be introduced by Democratic leaders. The bill list, obtained by Diverse, includes an Education Opportunity Act of 2009 to improve college affordability, strengthen math and science instruction and provide more early childhood education programs.
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