Politics & Government
Lang Hails House Approval of "B or Better College Plan" Providing Free Tuition, Debt Relief
The bill would also provide debt relief to recent college graduates.
(Springfield, IL) – The Illinois House yesterday approved legislation to provide virtually free community college and university education for all low and middle-income Illinois students who earn a “B” or better grade point average.
The House voted 65-50 on Monday to approve legislation, House Bill 1316, that provides a $4,000 grant annually to college bound students who earn a B or better G.P.A. and whose family earns less than $125,000 annually. This new grant program will provide either “free” tuition and fees at a community college or public university or a significant contribution toward such expenses.
“The ‘B or Better’ college bill is a dramatic rescue and reinvestment in state universities and community colleges by rewarding students who earn good grades with grants that, in most cases, will provide free tuition throughout their higher education career,” said the bill’s chief sponsor, House Deputy Majority Leader Lou Lang (D-Skokie).
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The grant would be applied to the recipient’s tuition and fee costs, after the application of other institutional and family-certified aid. The bill would also provide debt relief to recent college graduates.
Lang estimates that the legislation, which is effective for the 2018-2019 school year, will cost approximately $300 million in the first year. The proposal has no impact on the current budget debate.
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Lang said that the legislation is a centerpiece of House Democratic efforts to “revive Illinois manufacturing” and job growth by providing a major boost to the state’s college system. He pointed to a 2015 Manufacturing Institute report that found that 72% of U.S. manufacturing executives cited community college vocational programs as their second most important strategy to “mitigate the effects of skills shortages.”
Lang warns that Illinois’ higher education is “in danger of extinction,” pointing to an “exodus” of both professors and a net emigration of 12,700 students in 2014, a 70 percent increase over the last 10 years.
The legislation now moves to the Illinois Senate for consideration.
davidormsby@davidormsby.com
