Sen. Jamie Eldridge Proposes Debt-Free Public Higher Education in Mass.

One Massachusetts senator is taking aim at the mounting cost of higher education and the financial burden placed on families who can't afford to send their kids to college.

Sen. Jamie Eldridge, a Democrat from Acton, has filed legislation that he says would make public higher education in the state debt free for more than 90 percent of Massachusetts households.

The "College For All" bill would require the state to cover the cost of tuition and mandatory curriculum of course fees not covered by Federal Student Aid at public community colleges, universities and the UMass campuses. Under the bill, the state would also cover housing and transportation costs for residents whose annual household income is at or below the median income in Massachusetts.

"I was inspired to file this legislation out of the experiences of so many families in my district and elsewhere in Massachusetts who are struggling to pay for college," Eldridge said in a statement. "Our ultimate goal must be for every student, most especially students from low-income and working-class families, to be able to go to college without having to take out loans or incur crippling debt."

To be eligible for the "College For All" plan, students must come from a household with an annual income of $200,000 or less; have attended a Massachusetts high school or attained the equivalent of a high school degree and reside in Massachusetts; applied for federal and state grants or aid through FAFSA; be a full-time student at a public higher education institution with a minimum course load of 15 credits per semester; maintain a minimum 2.7 GPA and not hold a baccalaureate degree or higher.

Students who are not able to apply through FAFSA are exempt from that requirement.

“If we’re serious about making an affordable college education a realistic opportunity for all Massachusetts residents, we have to eliminate any financial barriers for working families,” Eldridge said in a statement. “The state must, therefore, not only cover school tuition and fees, but also housing and transportation costs for low-income and middle-income families.”

According to Eldridge's office, college tuition has more than tripled over the past 30 years, resulting in close to $1.4 trillion in outstanding student loans nationwide.

This at a time when a college degree is particularly vital for many high-paying careers.

A 2014 study from the Pew Research Center found that workers with at least a bachelor's degree earned a median annual income of $45,500, while the median annual earnings of people with some college or a high school diploma were $30,000 and $28,000, respectively.

"A college degree in Massachusetts has become essential to getting a job that will pay enough to cover our state’s rising cost of living, save for retirement and to reduce our state’s staggering wealth gap," Eldridge said in a statement. "High student loan debt, however, is forcing graduates to work two jobs just to keep up with student loan payments or risking default. That’s unsustainable for the state’s economy and, quite frankly, unacceptable when we are giving tens of millions in tax breaks to wealthy corporations."

Image via Sen. Jamie Eldridge Twitter