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Adam
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Plan would boost income tax to pay Mich. tuition
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Two Democratic lawmakers on Tuesday proposed raising Michigan’s income tax rate to pay university tuition for students and fund preschool programs for 4-year-olds.
The proposal faces an uphill climb to win approval in the state Legislature, which is unlikely to endorse a tax increase. But supporters say they are prepared to mount a petition drive, if necessary, to put the plan before voters.
“It’s an investment in our children, our families and our state’s future,” said Rep. Alma Wheeler Smith of Washtenaw County’s Salem Township, who plans to seek the Democratic nomination for governor in 2010.
Smith is introducing the legislation along with Rep. Rebekah Warren of Ann Arbor.
The plan would raise about $2 billion through a higher state income tax. It would cost a household earning $49,699 about $524 more a year before deductions.
Wheeler Smith and Warren acknowledged it’s difficult to endorse a tax increase when Michigan is saddled with the nation’s highest unemployment rate. But they said raising the state’s educational level would improve Michigan’s economy in the long run.
The lawmakers said the plan eventually would save families tuition costs and save the state money through lower corrections and welfare spending. The state also would save money because some scholarship and financial aid programs would no longer be needed.
Matt Marsden, spokesman for Republican Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop, said the GOP caucus would be unlikely to support the proposal because “a tax increase for Michigan families in a depressed economy doesn’t make any sense.”
Marsden said it may be more prudent for the state to invest some federal stimulus money in the types of programs sought by the Democratic lawmakers.
The plan would provide reimbursable tax credits to repay tuition at a public university, community college or technical school. Families could file for the tax credits when they send in their state tax returns.
Taxpayers earning $107,000 or less would be eligible for full tuition reimbursement. The credits would phase out for taxpayers earning more than $127,000.
“It’s worthy of consideration,” said Mike Boulus, director of the Presidents Council, an organization representing the presidents of Michigan’s public universities. “There is a lot of merit behind the proposal.”
But Boulus said the proposal would have to be studied in more detail before universities would decide whether they are on board with the plan.
The proposal would include provisions to limit tuition increases if state aid to universities keeps pace with inflation.
Schools also would get funding for preschool programs for 4-year-olds under terms of the proposal, which will be introduced in the Legislature later this spring.
Supporters will ask the Legislature to approve the proposal and put it before voters, who would have the final say. But Wheeler Smith and Warren said a petition drive seeking voter signatures to put the issue on the ballot could be started if the Legislature doesn’t act. |
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Thu Apr 09, 2009 3:43 pm |
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