Received: from Ra.MsState.Edu (Ra.MsState.Edu [130.18.80.10]) by csf.Colorado.EDU (8.7.6/8.7.3/CNS-4.0p) with ESMTP id LAA27478 for ; Tue, 17 Jun 1997 11:51:31 -0600 (MDT) Received: from localhost (cdh3@localhost) by Ra.MsState.Edu (8.8.5/7.0m-FWP-MsState) with SMTP id MAA28197 for ; Tue, 17 Jun 1997 12:51:30 -0500 (CDT) Date: Tue, 17 Jun 1997 12:51:30 -0500 (CDT) From: "Clark D. Hudspeth" To: socgrad@csf.colorado.edu Subject: NAGPS Release: Tax Bill Assaults Grad. Teachers/Researchers (fwd) Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII ---------- Forwarded message ---------- >>NEWS >>RELEASE >> >>June 11, 1997 Contact: Bryan Hannegan, President, (714) 824-1133 >> Kevin Boyer, Exec Director, (847) 256-1562 >> Jonathan Wharton, Legislative Dir, (202) 223-3791 >> >> >> TAX BILL ATTACKS >> GRADUATE TEACHERS AND RESEARCHERS >> >> "It feels like _deja vu_ all over again," >> says national student group. >> >> >> Washington, DC . . . Rep. Bill Archer (R-TX), Chair of the >>House Ways and Means Committee, released his tax proposals this >>week and graduate students throughout the U.S. have found >>themselves, once again, in the crosshairs of Congressional Budget >>Cutters. This time, however, the tax committee has targeted >>graduate teaching and research assistants, graduate students who >>teach up to 40% of the courses on some of the nation's largest >>university campuses and conduct a large portion of the nation's >>technological, defense, medical, engineering, chemical and other >>research. >> >> "This isn't tax relief that will help make education more >>accessible," said Bryan Hannegan, a graduate student at the >>University of California/Irvine and President of the National >>Association of Graduate-Professional Students (NAGPS). "The >>proposed changes in the tax code could push people out of graduate >>school due to costs, could force universities to dramatically >>increase teaching and research assistant salaries, could increase >>tuition for undergraduates throughout the US, and could >>dramatically reduce the value of our nation's research dollars - >>much of it federal money." >> >> The proposed provision would eliminate a subsection 117(d) of >>the tax code that presently allows universities to waive the >>tuition of its graduate teaching and research assistants in return >>for the services provided by the student. The tax code >>specifically excludes this tuition waiver from income tax. "This >>makes sense since the student never even sees the actual money," >>said Hannegan. The provision is widely used by universities to >>make graduate school affordable to students, to recruit highly- >>qualified graduate students, and to lower labor costs, thus keeping >>tuition lower. >> >>- more - >> >>June 11, 1997 >>Page 2 of 2 >> >> "Eliminating the exclusion from tax of these tuition waivers >>would have a catastrophic effect on students, as well as the entire >>education system," said Kevin Boyer, NAGPS Executive Director. In >>some cases, students receive a $10,000 stipend per year for serving >>as a teaching assistant. Tuition waivers can have a value of up to >>$20,000 per year at some institutions. The Chairman's tax >>provision would force the student to pay taxes on $30,000 in >>"income," despite the fact that the student would only have $10,000 >>in "cash income" from which to pay the tax. If a student pays 20% >>of his/her income in tax, the "stipend" has a after-tax-value of >>$8,000 now. Paying 20% of $30,000 ($6,000) reduces the $10,000 >>"stipend" to an after-tax-value of $4,000 - a 50% cut in net >>income. >> >> Boyer notes that three other provisions in the tax code also >>target graduate/professional students. 1) The HOPE scholarships >>will be available only to those in the first 2 years of post-high >>school education; 2) The deduction for higher education expenses >>specifically excludes graduate school; and, 3) the extension of the >>Employer Provided Educational Assistance portion of the tax code >>(Section 127) applies only to undergraduate courses. >> >> In addition, the Student Loan Interest Deduction does not >>appear in the Chairman's tax proposal, despite promises by both >>presidential campaigns in 1996 and widespread support from both >>sides of the aisle in the Congress. >> >> "Graduate students should feel betrayed by this tax proposal," >>said Boyer. "Not only does it contain odious provisions that are >>sure to make graduate school unaffordable for millions of Americans >>throughout the next decade, but it fails to deliver on promises >>made by Congressional Republicans during the last election >>campaign. This tax proposals smells more and more like budget >>proposals in 1995 in which students were targeted for $30 billion >>in budget cuts. Cutting funding to students - at all levels - was >>a bad idea then and it is a bad idea now. We should be focusing on >>improving access to graduate education, concentrating on spiraling >>graduate debt, and encouraging all forms of investment in graduate >>education by students, universities and employers. This tax >>proposal is a dramatic step in the wrong direction." >> >> NAGPS Board members and students will take their message to >>Congress next week during a June 19 Lobby Day in Washington, DC. >>More information about the NAGPS Lobby Day, including press >>activities, may be found at the NAGPS web site at >>http://www.nagps.org/NAGPS/ under "Student Aid Awareness" links. >> >>__________________ >> >> A copy of the Chairman's mark can be found on the web at: >> http://gop.house.gov/taxrelief/060997Description.htm >> >> Provisions identified above can be found in sections >> >>* II-A-1 Chairman excludes grad students from HOPE) >>* II-A-2 Chairman excludes grad students from education tax >>deductions) >>* II-B-1 Chairman taxes employer provided educational assistance >>for graduate students) >>* II-B-4 Chairman taxes graduate teaching/research assistant >>tuition waivers). >> >> ### >> >> >>*========================================================================* >>| >>>> The National Association of Graduate - Professional Students <<<< | >>| 825 Green Bay Road, Suite 270 PHONE: 847-256-1562 | >>| Wilmette, IL 60091 FAX: 847-256-8954 | >>| Toll Free 1-888-88-NAGPS * Email to: NAGPS@NETCOM.COM | >>*------------------------------------------------------------------------* >>| NAGPS 12th National Conference - New Orleans, Louisiana | >>| October 30 - November 2, 1997 | >>+-----------------------------------+------------------------------------+ >>| To access the NAGPS Internet Job Bank, send email to nagps@netcom.com | >>*-----------------------------------+------------------------------------* >>| #### WWW Site > http://www.nagps.org/NAGPS/ #### | >>*========================================================================* >> >>_____________________________________________________________________________ >> This message | *** *** *** Stop the Raid on Student Aid! *** *** *** >> sent using the | Call 1-800-574-4AID >> NAGPS E-mail | Send your letter to SAVE-STUDENT-AID@NETCOM.COM and NAGPS >> Server | will print it and hand-deliver it to your Congress people