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HOW CAN THE GOVERNMENT INTERVENE? One proposed idea that could potentially fix the college tuition problem is distributing government subsidies to universities. Those in favor of this route generally believe that education is a public good and should be accessible to anyone as citizens of the United States. A major proponent of this stance, Bernie Sanders, is currently in the thick of a heated presidential race and if elected, one could assume he would surely attempt to implement a free education policy. Eliminating the responsibility of paying for college would alleviate student debt and take a huge load off of the shoulders from millions of students nationwide, leaving them in a better spot after graduation. In addition, families that are struggling to afford the hefty price of college would have more financial freedom to pursue other endeavors.
Despite the roadblocks that this policy may bring upon, many state universities have adopted a policy of free tuition in recent history. Recently, President Barack Obama announced a plan to abolish tuition nationwide for community college students. College tuition is also free in much of Europe, including Germany, France, and Denmark. Thus begging the question, if these advanced democratic countries can do it, why can’t we? Professor Jon Wiener claims in The Nation that if the conservative German government “Can be pressured into eliminating tuition, why can’t the same thing happen with the Democrats in the United States?” While on the surface subsidized tuition costs seem like a tremendous idea, there are several problems that come along with socialized education in America. First off, republican ideology is starkly against it, which brings upon a significant roadblock if any bill were to be put before congress. This is because paying for college would still be quite expensive, and someone would need to pay for it. College tuition has risen five hundred percent while the consumer price index (inflation) rate has increased only one hundred fifteen percent since 1985, so the government would have to either find or generate a large amount of money in order to pay for college. The government already spends close to seventy billion on education, and according to Jordan Weissmann of The Atlantic, an estimated additional 63 billion dollars would be needed to fund such a policy. This is a problem since the U.S government is already over seven trillion dollars in debt. However, this is certainly not an insurmountable volume of money to add, especially considering the 2015 budget had 1.11 trillion dollars in discretionary spending and education makes up a mere three percent of that. So ultimately, despite the roadblocks they may face, it is feasible that subsidized college tuition could become commonplace if the right pieces fit and America makes a collective effort to jump on board with it. |