As of today, December 14, it looks like the voices of graduate students around the country are being heard. According to the article, “Apparent Relief for Grad Students” by Andrew Kreighbaum, a contributor to Inside Higher Ed, the proposed repeal of “tax-exempt tuition waivers for graduate students” is apparently being withdrawn from the final version of the congressional bill.
Around the country, graduate students have been actively protesting the proposed bill, some of them even arrested. Perhaps, the decision to withdraw the proposal may be due to the nonsensical nature of the proposed legislation. After all, the money can’t even be considered income since the payment goes directly to the school without even passing through the students’ hands.
Most grad students generally receive a living stipend for which they do pay income tax. With these often less than sufficient “salaries,” it can be difficult to even find adequate housing since their income may not satisfy requirements set by leasing agencies.
Being on fellowship, I have been more fortunate than other grad students since I receive a higher annual stipend, yet were this bill to go through I would be stuck with an even higher tax burden than them. At the same time, I still feel guilty for earning more than many of my fellow colleagues.
On a positive note, the anxiety of this proposed tax reform bill did generate some good solidarity movements among grad students around the country and it also drummed up support from local and congressional lawmakers.
It is sad, however, that grad students were even called into question on this. Are these government officials who came up with this plan simply just trying to stick it to the better educated yet monetarily deprived population? It really hurts that the US could spend hundreds of billions of dollars on war machines or weapons of mass destruction, yet would even dare try to extract more money from a depleted community. What or who was really behind this and why?
In my opinion, we have a president now who, much like his constituents, has hidden capital in overseas accounts in order to diminish his very own tax burden at home, thus passing the onus onto other taxpayers, including grad students, who honestly declare what they earn.
I’m glad to know that some reasonable people are still part of the lawmaking process in this country and that they could recognize how ridiculous this whole proposal indeed was.
In any event, this is a real win for graduate students in every discipline since it would become impossible for most of us to even be able to attend school at this level without going into serious debt. This financial support and these tuition waivers are essential for those who will be trained to carry on the system of higher education for future generations of students.
After all, where would any of these lawmakers be without the professors and teachers that helped educate them about the world? Then again…..
