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Street roots 13 Nov. 7, 2014 Student debt a social problem demanding federal action BY M . NELS JOHNSON workforce by reducing their wages by at least 10 percent in perpetuity through their lection Day has sadly become a student loan debt obligations. According to reminder to us all that we are a the Institute for College Access & Success, deeply divided country that doesn’t graduates of public universities in Oregon agree on much. We differ on Democrats vs. have onaverage more than $25,000 in debt Republicans, trickle-down economics vs; a acquired from a bachelor’s degree, while more redistributive approach, a moré active graduates from private universities in and aggressive foreign policy vs. a more Oregon on average have a slightly higher reserved and isolationist, rich vs. poor, debt total for the same bachelor’s degree. SuperPACs vs. the people, etc., etc. But A recent report in The Oregonian showed beyond our differences, one thing unites us that the total amount of student debt in as Americans: our persistent belief in the Oregon has doubled in the last decade. All. power and opportunity found in education. this, while wages for 90 percent of For generations now, Democrats, Americans has stagnated for a generation. Republicans, African Americans, Asian We have now made students pay premium Americans, rich, poor, rural, urban and to join the middle class and earn less money Americans from every walk of life have than their parents did. Even under instilled in their children the importance of President Obama’s plan for student loan working hard in school and getting a good relief, students must still pay at least 15 education. In fact, education and hard work percent of their income toward their are the dual engines of the American student loans. USA Today reports that this Dream, giving one the power needed to 15 percent (or more) being paid to student propel up the economic ladder and into the loan lenders is already u drag on the middle class. economy. As a result of being thousands of The problem, according to the Economic dollars in debt, tnore and more young Policy Institute, is that a bachelor’s degree professionals are putting off things like is not enough any more for many jobs that provide an entry point into the middle class. homeownership, marriage and starting a family. Without some sort erf structural Middle class jobs used to only require a reform student loan debt is likely to be a bachelor’s degree, now many require a drag on the economy for a generation. master’s degree. Additionally, the cost of But even though student debt is largely a obtaining a bachelor’s degree has increased federal issue, there are still plenty of things more than 1,112 percent over the last 30 years, according to a study commissioned by the Oregon Legislature can do to not only Bloomberg News. The study finds that ease the burden on those students with college costs have increased “four times huge debt, but also to bring down the cost faster than the increase in the consumer curve of higher education. A good place for price index.” the Legislature to start would be tax policy. And though the benefits of going to Currently, those with student debt can college still Outweigh the cost, we are receive a federal tax deduction for the ushering a new generation into the interest they pay on their student loan C O N T R IB U T IN G C O L U M N IS T E M, Neb Johnson M. Nels Johnson is an elected director serving on the board o f the M ultnom ah Education Service District, adjunct professor a t Warner Pacific College an d is an attorney in private practice. H e an d his wife live in Northeast Portland. payments. The federal deduction is not perfect, it only allows you to deduct up to $2,500 and the deductiongoes away if you make more than $75,000, Oregon ought to go farther and allow state income tax deductions for all student loan payments. This won’t solve the problem of students loans outright, but it will provide some financial relief for those forced to pay an outsized amount of their monthly income repaying student loans. A second thing the legislature should do is create a 9/11-style commission (not to overly dramatize the issue) to investigate: what went wrong with the cost of higher education; how did we get to a place where higher education requires a mortgage-sized loan and, most importantly; what can'be done to solve the problem. But then lawmakers must show courage and enact whatever sort of reforms the commission recommends, no matter how painful they might seem. Ultimately, like immigration reform, student debt is a federal issue. But'just like the fight for immigration reform, Congress doesn’t seem interested or capable of solving the problem. People with student debt can’t wait any longer oh the federal government If we want to solve the student debt problem for Oregon students we should get started and hope the federal government follows our lead. Restoring the American Dream starts with restoring the pathway to prosperity for generations to come. It’s still true that the surest path to prosperity still runs through a good education. May we have the vision and courage to make sure all students still have access to that path; let’s fix the student loan problem before it’s too late. THE MAGIC IS IN THE HOLE! 2 2 SW 3R D & BURNSIDE 15.Ot.NE DAVIS 211 in fo W ant to learn more about yo u r vendor? 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