University of Maryland, College Park.
On February 20th, Delegate Keith E. Haynes introduced the free Community Colleges – Out–of–State Fee. The bill introduces the possibility of Maryland becoming the fourth state to grant free community college tuition in the country; he also, introduced two more bills that offer low-income families tax credits for money spent on community college. “We’re hoping that this is the year that we can move forward so we don’t lose sight of the primary goal, and we can look at some ways to fund this,” told Mr. Haynes, Baltimore Democrat to the Washington Times.
In the past two years, three states have passed legislation for free community college, and former President Obama during his presidency began pushing for the federal government to join states and make two-year college education free for everyone. The current administration has not shown interest in making community college free. “I think that is an interesting idea, it’s great to consider and think about but we have to consider that in life, there is nothing completely free somebody is going to pay for it,” told Betsy DeVos to the NEW YORK TIMES.
According to the Washington Times, The majority of People in Maryland are not informed about the bills since there is a lack of support, and the media has failed to cover the process. It is still unclear, how the state is going to fund the bill if it moves forward. “Taxes are going to go up, and I don’t think people will be happy with that,” said Mary Steele, a college student at the American University.
Many people are concerned that the state is not willing to spend more money on education since the there is a potential funding cut of 130 million dollars according to the Baltimore Sun. “I think I read about that a while ago, but I am not 100% sure. Free College tuition is not going to happen very soon, perhaps in the future. Maryland is not ready for that yet,” said Mariah Gonzalez, a Maryland Resident.