House Bill 1238: Time to lower tuition

We must unite this legislative session to break down barriers to college education, and ensure the opportunities of higher education are affordable for everyone.

But what do we mean by saying college should be affordable?

Tuition doubled since 2008, and now costs over 20 percent of the average family’s income. Average loan debt for incoming students is expected to be over $28,000 – This is not affordable.

A tuition freeze for the past two years was an important step, and it needs to continue. But saying we’ll “freeze” or “cut” tuition without providing the estimated $100 million to make up the gap that freezing tuition creates would mean drastic cuts on campus to courses and advising.

A recent study found that the total cost of attending WSU and UW is only affordable for families earning over $120,000 – per student.

HB 1238 would set a goal for our state that tuition should not be more than 10 percent of the average family’s income to be “affordable.”

This bill has support from the most effective advocates for higher education: students and your families. And we need your help.

HB 1238 sets meaningful benchmarks to ensure that higher education is a right, no matter your socioeconomic status, race, or where you live in Washington. We know that tuition and debt are too high, and that financial aid is too low. You deserve better. Students deserve a strong definition for what “affordable” tuition is. If we truly value equal opportunity for everyone to access education, we must ensure that it’s something that all hard-working families can afford.

Anything above 10 percent is a serious financial strain that will cut into your parents’ retirement, savings for your siblings, and more. Student debt should not be the default option. In addition to this requirement for affordability, it is our moral imperative to ensure that we fully fund state financial aid: the State Need Grant, College Bound, and alternatives to high-interest loans.

To move a policy like this forward, we need you. Students can make a significant difference, even more so if students, parents, and alumni constituents meet in-district with your legislators. Hearing the perspective of students and families DOES affect how legislators represent your values. Setting up coffees at students and alums’ homes with local legislators has proven effective by students and alumni at Western Washington University with their advocacy organization, Western Advocates. Legislators truly care about your experiences. They will only know what solutions you support if you tell them.

You have probably heard a lot about funding for K-12 education this session. You also may have heard proposals to “cap” tuition. To do this, we need to increase state funding. Because what good is it to afford a class that there aren’t enough slots for you to enroll in? Or enough advisers to help plan your prerequisites? Your college education should be high quality and affordable. Our proposal to ensure that access to affordable higher education is a right has been passed by the House twice, and we will keep trying until higher education in our state is something we can attain.

Please email or call your legislators to ask that HB 1238 be passed to have a goal for affordable tuition, and to support the revenue needed to pay for a tuition freeze for the next two years. You can email your legislators here: http://app.leg.wa.gov/DistrictFinder/

State Representative Gerry Pollet represents NE and N Seattle, Kenmore and Lake Forest Park (the 46th District) and is vice-chair of the House Higher Education Committee. He was honored as the Washington Student Association’s “Legislator of the Year” for both 2013 and 2014. He can be reached at [email protected]