MADISON (AP) - Assembly Republicans moved closer to passing Gov. Scott Walker's college affordability bills Thursday, pushing the legislation out of committee and setting up a floor vote despite Democrats' complaints that the package is essentially a campaign talking point.
The bills include plans to lift the cap on tax-deductible student loan interest, boost grants for students and create internship coordinators. The Assembly's universities committee passed the package on party-line votes, with all five Democrats on the panel voting against each measure. They argued the bills do little to help students and are really designed to give Republicans cover in their re-election bids.
Walker announced the bills earlier this month after Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said he wants to wrap up the legislative session by the end of February so lawmakers can start campaigning. The bills will enable Republicans to rebut opponents' claims that they've largely ignored student debt issues.
"This is wholly inadequate," Rep. Dana Wachs, an Eau Claire Democrat, said. "This is nothing but window dressing for campaign season."
Republicans countered that they're just beginning to address college affordability.
"This is certainly the first step in a long series of things ... that will make Wisconsin's colleges much more affordable and move bright kids into the marketplace," said Rep. John Macco of Ledgeview.
The bills would:
• Lift the $2,500 cap on tax-deductible student loan interest.
• Increase grants for technical college students by $500,000 in the current fiscal year and in 2016-17.
• Provide grants of up $500 per year to technical college students and two-year students in the University of Wisconsin Colleges to help them deal with emergencies. The grants couldn't be used for textbooks, student fees or food. Only students whose families are expected to contribute less than $5,000 to college expenses would be eligible.
• Require the state Department of Workforce Development to spend $200,000 annually on two full-time employees who would coordinate internships between colleges and employers.
• Create coordinators within the University of Wisconsin System to help students find internships with businesses. An analysis shows the measure provides $500,000, enough to create nine such positions.
• Require any college that offers at least an associate degree to send a letter to students at the beginning of every academic year detailing how much debt they've accumulated, the interest rates they face, the total projected cost of each of their loans, the total cost of attendance and total grant money received.
Democrats complained that the package amounts to crumbs for struggling students and blasted Republicans for not dealing with college affordability head-on.
"(There's been) no honest discussion of how to help students," Rep. Terese Berceau of Madison said.
Rep. Joan Ballweg, a Markesan Republican, pushed back, noting that Republicans have frozen University of Wisconsin System tuition for four straight years. Rep. Dave Murphy, the Greenville Republican who chairs the committee, said many of the concepts for the legislation came from UW System officials themselves.
System spokesman Alex Hummel confirmed in an email to The Associated Press that at least some of the proposals came from system personnel's conversations with lawmakers. He pointed to the internship coordinator plan as an example.
The full Assembly will take up the bills next month, Vos spokeswoman Kit Beyer said.
The bills include plans to lift the cap on tax-deductible student loan interest, boost grants for students and create internship coordinators. The Assembly's universities committee passed the package on party-line votes, with all five Democrats on the panel voting against each measure. They argued the bills do little to help students and are really designed to give Republicans cover in their re-election bids.
Walker announced the bills earlier this month after Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said he wants to wrap up the legislative session by the end of February so lawmakers can start campaigning. The bills will enable Republicans to rebut opponents' claims that they've largely ignored student debt issues.
"This is wholly inadequate," Rep. Dana Wachs, an Eau Claire Democrat, said. "This is nothing but window dressing for campaign season."
Republicans countered that they're just beginning to address college affordability.
"This is certainly the first step in a long series of things ... that will make Wisconsin's colleges much more affordable and move bright kids into the marketplace," said Rep. John Macco of Ledgeview.
The bills would:
• Lift the $2,500 cap on tax-deductible student loan interest.
• Increase grants for technical college students by $500,000 in the current fiscal year and in 2016-17.
• Provide grants of up $500 per year to technical college students and two-year students in the University of Wisconsin Colleges to help them deal with emergencies. The grants couldn't be used for textbooks, student fees or food. Only students whose families are expected to contribute less than $5,000 to college expenses would be eligible.
• Require the state Department of Workforce Development to spend $200,000 annually on two full-time employees who would coordinate internships between colleges and employers.
• Create coordinators within the University of Wisconsin System to help students find internships with businesses. An analysis shows the measure provides $500,000, enough to create nine such positions.
• Require any college that offers at least an associate degree to send a letter to students at the beginning of every academic year detailing how much debt they've accumulated, the interest rates they face, the total projected cost of each of their loans, the total cost of attendance and total grant money received.
Democrats complained that the package amounts to crumbs for struggling students and blasted Republicans for not dealing with college affordability head-on.
"(There's been) no honest discussion of how to help students," Rep. Terese Berceau of Madison said.
Rep. Joan Ballweg, a Markesan Republican, pushed back, noting that Republicans have frozen University of Wisconsin System tuition for four straight years. Rep. Dave Murphy, the Greenville Republican who chairs the committee, said many of the concepts for the legislation came from UW System officials themselves.
System spokesman Alex Hummel confirmed in an email to The Associated Press that at least some of the proposals came from system personnel's conversations with lawmakers. He pointed to the internship coordinator plan as an example.
The full Assembly will take up the bills next month, Vos spokeswoman Kit Beyer said.