College Aid Is Smart Politics to Democratic Candidates

Zeroing in on growing anxieties about the costs of college, many of the Democratic presidential candidates are promoting ambitious proposals to ease the financial burden on students and their parents.

None of the major proposals would establish brand-new government entitlements, but some would significantly expand existing federal initiatives to provide more college aid to families.

The most dramatic ideas include a call by former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean to provide all higher education students with $10,000 a year in federal grants or loans. Another is a proposal by Massachusetts Sen. John F. Kerry to have the government pay for four years of public college tuition for those who devote two years to working in national service programs.

Even as Iraq and the economy loom as leading topics for this year’s presidential contest, higher education is emerging as a key secondary theme. Many Democrats see it as a potentially winning issue for their party, given widespread concerns about college costs and the Bush administration’s near-exclusive focus so far on K-12 education.

The proposals unveiled by many of the Democratic candidates, which also include various expanded tax breaks, are part of a strategy to appeal to middle-class voters -- a constituency that President Clinton courted in much the same way.

“The amount of time, energy and investment that the Democratic candidates are putting into higher education suggests that they see this as a critical difference between themselves and what the Bush administration is doing or, more pointedly, what the Bush administration is not doing,” said Robert M. Shireman, a higher education advisor in the Clinton administration.

The Bush-Cheney reelection campaign has not issued detailed plans for higher education. A spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Education, Susan Aspey, said the administration has indicated it will focus on the “broad goals” of “affordability for education, access to education and accountability for results.”

The Democratic candidates are fleshing out their higher education policies amid a wave of steep tuition increases at public colleges and universities. Tuition at public, four-year institutions rose by 14.1% to an average of $4,694 for this school year, largely the result of state budget squeezes, said the College Board, a nonprofit group that owns a standardized test many colleges require for admission.

What’s more, a survey in May commissioned by the Educational Testing Service, which is affiliated with the College Board, found that 52% of U.S. adults considered rising tuition and other costs the biggest problem facing colleges and universities.

“Higher education is one of those things that people expect to have subsidized, like home mortgages. It’s considered part of the middle-class package that government is supposed to make sure people have. And when people sense that’s getting amok, political candidates respond pretty fast,” said Patrick M. Callan, president of the nonprofit National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education.

Not all the higher education proposals by the Democrats focus purely on helping students and their families pay for tuition.

Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina promises to use the bully pulpit of the presidency to urge colleges and universities to end legacy preferences -- the edge in admissions given children of alumni. He also would push to ensure that all public high school students, other than those opting out, are placed in college prep curriculums.

Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, who like Edwards often mentions that he is a first-generation college graduate, would create financial incentives for colleges to boost graduation rates, particularly for low-income and minority students.

In addition, Lieberman, Kerry and retired Gen. Wesley K. Clark have signaled a willingness to take aim at the economic roots of rising tuition costs. Persistently high labor expenses, the cost of new technology and, above all, state spending cutbacks have pushed administrators to increase tuition.

Still, the candidates have emphasized plans that would give students and families more aid. “Part of politics is listening. And when you go around and talk to people, this is a concern that ranks near the top for a lot of voters,” said Dan Gerstein, a Lieberman campaign spokesman.

Many of the college finance ideas hark back to the Clinton administration. In 1997, two initiatives championed by him -- the Lifetime Learning Tax Credit and the Hope Scholarship tax credit -- were enacted, showering benefits on the middle class. In 2004, these programs are expected to provide nearly $6 billion in tax savings for college students and their families.

In addition, the Pell Grant for low-income students -- which now provides up to $4,050 a year for tuition as well as books and other expenses -- was sharply increased in the Clinton years.

The centerpiece of Dean’s proposal -- one of the most specific offered by the Democrats -- would provide undergraduate college students with $10,000 a year in federal grants and loans for up to four years. The lower the student’s income, the more of that $10,000 a year would come from outright grants, rather than loans.

But even though it is one of the most expansive plans, it mainly packages and expands programs already in place. It would include the Pell Grants and would permit students to borrow as much as $40,000 in federally backed loans, up from the current limit of $23,000.

Dean campaign staffers said that the program would mean $6 billion in new spending, but that the cost would be covered by repealing the Bush tax cuts.

Dean, Kerry, Edwards and ex-Sen. Carol Moseley Braun of Illinois all promise to provide help for students who perform public service. Yet in most cases, this is mainly an expansion of the existing AmeriCorps national service program, which already provides $4,725 a year for college for up to two years. Kerry’s proposal would provide a similar amount, although it would continue for up to four years.

Dean would expand AmeriCorps from 50,000 to 250,000 positions, and Kerry envisions increasing the number in AmeriCorps and related programs to 500,000.

Those numbers pale in comparison to the more than 16 million Americans who attend colleges and universities annually.

Tax credits and deductions also figure prominently in the Democrats’ financial aid proposals. Probably the most costly proposal would be Kerry’s estimated $4-billion-a-year “College Opportunity Tax Credit.” It would expand the existing Hope Scholarship program by lifting the maximum annual credit from $1,500 to $2,500.

Clark would do away with Pell Grants and Hope tax credits and would attempt to simplify the financial aid process. He proposes grants of up to $6,000 a year, limiting the full amount to families earning less than $100,000 yearly.

Even if one of the higher education-minded Democrats wins the presidency, the effect on policy is uncertain. “A big question is, ‘What’s doable?’ What could get through Congress?” said Shireman, the ex-Clinton aide.

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(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

A helping hand

The Democratic presidential candidates’ proposals for higher education:

Wesley K. Clark

Would provide a “universal college grant” of up to $6,000 a year for the first two years of public or private college, with the aid going mainly to families earning less than $100,000 annually; would establish a $20-billion state and local tax rebate fund dedicated to education and training to offset the pressure on states to raise tuition at public universities; would provide credits for low-income families that put savings into education IRAs.

Howard Dean

Would provide all higher education students with $10,000 a year in federal grants or loans, depending on family income level; would provide college loan relief for participants in an expanded AmeriCorps national service program; would limit loan payments to 10% of income after college and end loan payments after 10 years; would reduce loan payments further, to 7% of income, for nurses, teachers, police officers, firefighters and others in public service jobs.

John Edwards

One year of free tuition in exchange for 10 hours a week of work during that year, preferably in a community service job; would urge an end to legacy admissions (that favor children of a college’s alumni) and early decision programs; proposes saving money by streamlining the federally backed college loan system; would push states to put all high school students, other than those who opt out, in college prep curriculums.

Dick Gephardt

Would make the first $10,000 of higher education costs tax-deductible; would support expanding grant and loan programs; would protect affirmative action programs.

John F. Kerry

Would provide full public college tuition for four years to participants in AmeriCorps and related national service programs; would expand annual tax credits to $2,500 for tuition; would provide fiscal relief to states that hold down tuition increases and push for colleges and universities to operate more efficiently.

Dennis J. Kucinich

Would cover $4,000 in tuition for students in state colleges and universities by restructuring the tax system and repealing tax cuts for high-income taxpayers.

Joe Lieberman

Would create financial incentives for colleges to boost graduation rates, particularly for low-income and minority students; would increase Pell Grants for low-income families from the current $4,050 to $7,760 by 2008-09; would help states and universities develop legally acceptable affirmative action programs; would push for financial accountability by colleges and universities.

Carol Moseley Braun

Would expand Pell Grants and other scholarships and financial aid programs to college-bound students, including repayment of college loans with public service.

Al Sharpton

No formal proposal.

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Source: Times staff reports; candidates’ news releases and websites.

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Note: The Bush-Cheney campaign has issued no formal higher education policy position for the 2004 campaign. A Department of Education spokeswoman said, however, that the administration would focus efforts on affordability, access and accountability.