More than a dozen co-sponsors in the U.S. Senate have reintroduced legislation that would make the cost of community and technical colleges more affordable to students.
The America’s College Promise Act, first introduced in July 2015, would create new federal-state partnerships to provide tuition-free access over a two-year period to community and technical college programs that lead to a degree or industry-recognized credential.
Sen. Tammy Baldwin, a Democrat from Wisconsin, said the legislation would give students the chance to access quality and affordable higher education that would help them succeed in today’s economy.
“Higher education should be a path to shared prosperity, not a path into suffocating debt. But unfortunately,” she said, “college costs and student loan debt are holding back an entire generation and creating a drag on economic growth for our country. I’m proud to introduce this legislation and help give more students the opportunity to gain the skills needed to compete, succeed and prosper.”
Under the legislation, which is co-sponsored by more than a dozen other senators, a full-time community college student could save more than $3,500 on average in tuition and fees per year, according to Baldwin.
The legislation also would:
According to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, the federal-state partnership would constitute a 75/25 cost share to provide tuition-free and fee-free community college for students.
