Editor: Below is an article from Inside Higher Ed on some of the
differences between the educational plans of democratic primary candidates Joe
Biden and Bernie Sanders. We thank
Inside Higher Ed for permission to reprint their analysis for our readers.
Big
Differences in Biden and Sanders's Plans
Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders have different ideas about college
affordability and higher education policy, both in their approaches and the
specificity of their plans.
By
Inside Higher
Ed
March 9, 2020
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Elizabeth Warren’s departure from the race for the Democratic
presidential nomination has left two candidates with different approaches to
dealing with college affordability and other higher education policy issues. In
addition to having different price tags, the plans released by Joe Biden
and Bernie Sanders
differ in how much detail they provide.
Price Tag:
Biden: $750 billion
Sanders: $2.2 trillion
Debt Forgiveness:
Sanders: Would cancel the entire balance of
$1.6 trillion in outstanding student debt in the U.S.
Biden: Would take a more targeted approach, enrolling all existing and
new borrowers in income-based repayment plans, except for those who choose to
opt out. Borrowers who make $25,000 or less per year would not owe any payments
on their undergraduate federal student loans and wouldn't accrue any interest
on those loans. Others would pay 5 percent of their discretionary annual
income above $25,000 toward loans. The plan would forgive 100 percent of
any remaining debt for those who have made payments for 20 years. It also would
change the tax code so that debt forgiven through income-based repayment
wouldn’t be taxed.
Biden's plan also would revamp the Public Service Loan Forgiveness
program, giving $10,000 of undergraduate or graduate debt relief for every year
of national or community service worked, up to five years. Individuals who work
in schools, government and other nonprofit settings would automatically be
enrolled in the forgiveness program. It would seek to address the problem of
applicants for PSLF being rejected for not enrolling in the right repayment
plan. Adjunct professors would be eligible for forgiveness, depending on the
amount of time devoted to teaching.
Free College:
Sanders: Would spend $48 billion per year to eliminate tuition and
fees at four-year public colleges and universities, tribal colleges, community
colleges, trade schools, and apprenticeship programs. His plan would create a
federal-state partnership in which the federal government would pay two-thirds
of the cost of providing free tuition, with the state responsible for the other
third.
Participating states and tribes must meet several requirements to
be eligible, including reductions of their reliance on low-paid contingent
faculty members. Funds generated by the program could not be used for
administrator salaries, merit-based financial aid or the construction of
nonacademic buildings such as stadiums and student centers.
Biden: Would make up to two years of community college free for all
students, including those who attend part-time, the children of undocumented
immigrants and those who did not graduate high school recently. The program
also would be created through a federal-state partnership, in which the federal
government would provide 75 percent of the cost, with states picking up
the remainder. The federal government would cover 95 percent of the cost
of eliminating tuition at tribal community colleges that serve low-income
students. Those who would receive two years of college tuition-free could then
get another free two years at historically black colleges and universities and
minority-serving institutions.
Other Student Aid:
Sanders: Because tuition would no longer exist at public institutions,
low-income students would be free to use federal Pell Grants for books, transportation,
housing and other costs. The plan would require states and tribes that
participate in the federal-state partnership for free college cover any costs
that are left over, after grants, for low-income students. It also would triple
spending on Federal Work-Study, with a focus on institutions that serve large
numbers of low-income students.
Biden: For community college students, the federal-state partnership for
free college would be so-called first dollar, meaning that student aid grants
could cover other costs of attending college besides tuition.
To help students at four-year institutions pay for costs other
than tuition, the plan would create a new grant program to provide support
services for students, especially veterans of the U.S. military, single
parents, low-income students, students of color and students with disabilities.
The grant could be used for public benefits, textbook and transportation costs,
and childcare and mental health services. Institutions also could use the money
to create emergency grant programs for students who experience an unexpected
financial challenge that threatens their ability to stay enrolled in college.
The plan would double the maximum award amount of Pell Grants,
increasing the number of middle-class students who’d be eligible for the
program. It would allow Dreamers and the formerly incarcerated to receive the
grants. Biden would prioritize the use of Federal Work-Study dollars for jobs
that either provide skills that are valuable for students' intended careers or
that contribute to their communities by mentoring students in K-12 classrooms
and community centers.
For-Profit Institutions:
Sanders: The plan does not mention for-profit colleges or
debt cancellation for students who were deceived by for-profits.
Biden: The plan would require for-profit institutions to prove their
value to the U.S. Department of Education to be eligible for federal aid. It
also would eliminate the 90-10 loopholethat, according to several veterans' groups, gives for-profits an incentive to
aggressively market to service members and veterans. The plan would empower the
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to take action against private lenders who
mislead students about their options and do not provide an affordable payment
plan during times of financial hardship. It would restore the Obama
administration’s borrower-defense rule, making it easier for people deceived by
for-profit institutions to have their student debt forgiven. It also would
allow private student loans to be discharged through bankruptcy.
Improving College Performance:
Sanders: His plan would create a federal-state
partnership that would differ from the one eliminating tuition. That program
would provide a dollar-for-dollar federal match for states and tribes to
increase academic opportunities for students, hire new faculty members and
provide professional development opportunities for professors.
Biden: His plan would create a grant program to help community colleges
implement evidence-based practices to increase student retention and completion
of credential programs. It would invest $8 billion to help community
colleges improve the health and safety of their facilities and acquire new
technology. It would provide grants to states that work to accelerate students’
attainment of bachelor's degrees and other credentials, such as through
offering dual-enrollment programs for community college and four-year degree
tracks.
HBCUs and Other Minority-Serving Institutions:
Sanders: The plan would spend $1.3 billion per year
to eliminate or significantly reduce tuition and fees for low-income students
at roughly 200 HBCUs and minority-serving institutions. To be eligible, at
least 35 percent of students at the institution would have to be low
income.
Biden: The plan would invest $18 billion in grants to provide two
years of free tuition to low-income and middle-class students at HBCUs and
other minority-serving institutions. In return colleges must invest in lowering
prices, improving retention and graduation rates, and closing equity gaps for
students of color.
It would spend another $10 billion to create at least 200 new
centers of excellence that serve as research incubators and connect
underrepresented students in career fields like climate change, globalization,
inequality, health disparities and cancer. Would boost funding for agricultural
research at land-grant universities, including HBCUs and tribal colleges or
universities, and would dedicate additional federal funding or grants and
contracts for HBCUs and minority-serving institutions. The plan would require
any federal research grants to universities with an endowment of over
$1 billion to subcontract with an HBCU, tribal college or minority-serving
institution. It also would spend $20 billion to build research facilities
and labs at HBCUs, tribal colleges and minority-serving institutions. And the
plan would invest $10 billion in programs at HBCUs, tribal college and
minority-serving institutions that increase enrollment, retention, completion
and employment rates.
Funding:
Biden: He would pay for the $750 billion plan by closing the
“stepped-up basis” loophole, which lowers the capital gains tax liability for
property passed on to an heir. Biden also would cap itemized deductions for
high-income taxpayers at 28 percent.
Sanders: He would pay for the $2.2 trillion plan by taxing Wall
Street trades.
