(The opinions expressed in guest op-eds are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of RedState.com.)
According to an ongoing cohort of 555 universities and colleges in America, the largest single gift for a college or university was $341 million. This gift is tax-deductible.
This extraordinaryly generous gift, made by an alumnus, was 9.1% of all the amount that was given that year in total to the 555 schools that had reported such data.
Each year, the average donation from foundations, corporations, and individuals is $50 billion. This amount goes to over 5000 universities and colleges in the United States. This amount has risen steadily over the last 20 years.
The individual donors’ who make such large gifts have an average annual salary and net worths of $500,000 and $2 million, respectively. The $2 million figure doesn’t include the individual’s personal residence. This includes the stock portfolio and any other investments including real estate.
Another way to put it, America’s more than 5000 colleges and universities can anticipate receiving over $500 billion worth of tax-deductible, private gifts in the next decade. They also have approximately $700billion in the college and university foundations.
This begs the obvious question: Why are these struggling families forced to pay even one penny for the fabulously rich higher education institutions?
Might it be time for all these wealthy university and college foundations to start sharing their wealth by paying down the costs of a 4-year education for those families who can’t afford to pay the cost?
This assistance should only be made available to students with low income who are able to prove that their family does not have sufficient financial means to cover tuition.
In contrast, the proposal by President to forgive loan debt, in what almost certainly is an abuse of his executive power under the Constitution, gives these rich universities and college foundations more wealth, without mentioning the investors or the financial institutions that have the debt.
Moreover, the president’s scheme will cause university and college tuition to rise even faster.
5000+ colleges and universities in America can expect to receive over $500 billion in private, tax-deductible gifts over the next decade…
How can we expect higher education institutions to respond to the realization that no matter how much they charge for our children to go to school, Uncle Sam will cover all costs.
The same thing happens in the healthcare sector. Third-party payments arrangements make it difficult to reduce medical expenses. Like with health care, higher education should be accessible to all, but consumer-driven to make sure the price isn’t beyond the reach of every family in America.
Transferring the cost to the taxpayers, including those taxpayers who can’t afford the tuition in the first place, will undoubtedly occur every time the need arises for President to pander to this particular demographic in the body politic, and for no other reason than for electoral gain.
Yes, I believe the money required to help those who can afford to make investments in education is available. But it doesn’t exist in Washington D.C., but, rather, in the many foundations that are currently sitting on over $700 billion in tax-deductible donations which grow by $50 billion every year.
Finally, it must be pointed out that too many of our kids seem to think that unless they attend a 4-year college or university their future won’t be a bright one. It is false. The majority, if certainly not the overwhelming majority, of children find community colleges a better alternative. They are also far less expensive.
A 4-year university typically charges half the amount of community colleges. And it isn’t because you receive half the education. Indeed, as explained by Dr. Mark Perry, Senior Fellow Emeritus at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, professors at community colleges aren’t under pressure to publish and don’t regularly attend expensive, four-day academic conferences in Costa Rica, Hawaii, and the Virgin Islands.
A community college is just as good as a 4-year elite university for the thousands of high school graduates in America. It costs only half of what a 4-year university would cost.
They are also vital to the economic health of their local communities. Santa Barbara County has Hancock College as well as Santa Barbara City College. They are both vibrant, irreplaceable assets that are proving to be a great asset for the entire region.
PS: And just for the sake of seeking consistency, and economic sanity, forgiving student loans isn’t inflationary any more than public libraries cause people to write books.
Joe Armendariz is the Director of Government Relations & Public Affairs for Armendariz Partners, LLC. The former executive director of Santa Barbara County Taxpayers Association and Santa Barbara Technology and Industry Association and Chairman of California Center for Public Policy, he is now the Director of Government Relations & Public Affairs for Armendariz Partners LLC. He is a person who views his views and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of any group affiliations. You can reach him at 805.990-2494
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