By David Drucker
Daily Bruin Reporter With the presidential election less than four
weeks away, George W. Bush and Al Gore ““ statistically even
in most polls ““ have widened the education debate to include
competing plans for college affordability. Their policy proposals,
as posted on their official campaign Web sites, both aim to make
college education more affordable. But for the most part, the
similarities end there. While both offer new tax-exempt educational
savings plans and an increase in federal funding, Bush appears to
allow more flexibility while Gore’s agenda is more targeted
in its approach. “The governor’s college education
affordability proposals are consistent with every other element of
his domestic policy,” said Bush-Cheney California campaign
spokeswoman Lindsey Kozberg. “He’s trying to emphasize
the idea of choice for families in choosing the savings options
which best suit their particular needs.” But since the first
presidential debate, the Gore campaign has been touting the vice
president’s plan to offer an annual tax deduction of up to
$10,000 or a 28 percent tax credit applicable to undergraduate,
graduate, and other continuing education tuition costs.
“Unlike Bush, Gore’s plan provides families with a
deduction for all post-secondary education,” said
Gore-Lieberman deputy national campaign spokeswoman Devona
Dolliole. Bush plans to expand the Pell Grant program, a form of
federally-funded financial aid for low-income students which they
do not have to pay back. The Bush agenda includes a proposal to
increase the maximum one-year Pell Grant award to $5,100 from its
current $3,300 for first-year students. Bush officials said studies
show students who don’t drop out after their first year have
a greater likelihood of graduating. Bush also proposes awarding an
additional $1,000 in Pell Grant money to students who pass math and
science advanced placements tests or college courses while in high
school. Though the Republican party opposed federal funding of
education in the past ““ even calling for the abolishment of
the Department of Education during the Reagan administration
““ the Bush campaign has taken a different approach.
“(Bush) is proposing expansion of the Pell Grant program
across the board,” Kozberg said. “What distinguishes
him from the Vice President is that he’s not proposing to create a
new federal bureaucracy, he simply proposes to expand a program
that works.” But Gore campaign officials disagree with that
premise and said the Bush plan is deficient in providing for the
lifelong education needs of Americans in the midst of a changing
economy. “The Bush tax cut would leave fewer dollars
available for investment in education,” Dolliole said.
Perhaps one of the biggest policy approach differences between the
two is Gore’s focus on continuing education. He proposes to
offer employers a $6,000 tax credit if they pay for information and
other new technology training for an employee. Levin G. Sy, a
graduate student in urban planning at the School of Public Policy
and Social Research and member of Karenna Gore-Schiff’s Youth
Media Outreach Program, said that this policy proposal difference
is significant. “Gore’s program is
comprehensive,” he said. “It provides funds for those
in college, and for those beyond college who want to make sure they
don’t get left behind by the global economy.” But the Bush
plan to expand the maximum yearly contribution into current
education savings accounts offers a way to save for any form of
future education and training, and is consistent with his
reluctance to create plans that target the spending of money in one
specific area. Education savings accounts, like Individual
Retirement Accounts, allow families to contribute a fixed amount of
money annually without being taxed on the interest earned. Bush
proposes raising the maximum yearly contribution from $500 to
$5,000 for two parent families earning $150,000 or less and for one
parent households earning $95,000 or less. Though Bush has spent
most of the campaign focusing on his plans to improve K-12
education, Kozberg said his candidate’s proposals has always
included offering people a choice when it comes to higher
education. “This policy is a continuation of his priority to
make education available and affordable for every American,”
she said. Gore, in keeping with his theme of targeting assistance
to areas he feels need it, is proposing to provide a maximum of
$10,000 of financial aid or loan forgiveness for students who agree
to spend four years teaching in “high need” schools or
teaching subjects that are short of qualified teachers. “The
vice president believes that it’s important not only to provide tax
cuts for families, but to train the next generation of teachers as
well,” Sy said.
HIGHER EDUCATION Candidate policy
proposals of interest to college students.
Al Gore Democrat
George W. Bush Republican
Proposes a maximum tax deductions of $10,000 per year against
college tuition costs, or a 28 percent tax credit.
Proposes a maximum of $10,000 in financial aid and loan
forgiveness for students who enter the teaching profession and
spend their first four years after graduation teaching in "high
need" schools or teaching subjects lacking in qualified
teaches.
Proposes offering a maximum tax credit of $6,000 to employers
who pay for information and other technology job training for
employees.
Proposes an additional $1,000 to low income Pell Grant
recipients who pass Advanced Placement in math and science tests or
math and science college classes while in high school.
Proposes increase in maximum annual Pell Grant to $5,100 for
first-year students only. Others would still be eligible for
current maximum of $3,300.
Proposes expanding Education Savings Accounts, which are similar
to tax free retirement accounts. Maximum yearly contribution would
increase to $5,000 from current maximum of $500, and would apply to
two parent households earning $150K or less, and single parent
households earning $95,000 or less.
Original by ADAM BROWN/Daily Bruin Senior Staff Web Adaptation
by MONICA KWONG/Daily Bruin Senior Staff