HARRISBURG – Following the passage of HB 2084, the PA Promise higher education plan, Keystone Research Center Executive Director Bernie Gallagher made the following statement:
“Today, the Pennsylvania House took a historic step toward making college affordable for working families by passing House Bill 2084, the PA Promise, with strong bipartisan support. The hard truth is that a college degree or credential has become financially out of reach for far too many in the Commonwealth. For decades, Pennsylvania has invested far too little in higher education. We rank 48th in the nation for higher education funding per capita and have the third-highest in-state tuition at public four-year colleges, nearly 70% above the national average. As a consequence, the total cost of attending a Pennsylvania public college now eats up almost 40% of our median household income, and our students graduate with some of the highest debt loads in the country.
“The PA Promise changes that. As a proven ‘last dollar’ scholarship, it makes community college free for every Pennsylvanian and makes PASSHE tuition free for households earning under $250,000, while drawing down the millions in federal Pell dollars our students currently leave on the table every year. Thirty states have already enacted programs like this, including our neighbors in Maryland and New York. Pennsylvania should not be last.
“This is about more than affordability. It’s about filling the jobs our Commonwealth needs — the teachers, nurses, first responders, and skilled tradespeople who keep our communities running — and giving rural Pennsylvania a fair shot at opportunity.
“We urge the Senate to follow the House’s lead and send the PA Promise to the Governor’s desk. Pennsylvania’s families, students, and economy can’t afford to wait.”
Read more about the PA Promise in KRC’s March report, “PA Promise: Higher Education Reform that Boosts Opportunity and Prosperty in Pennsylvania.”