Reply to When will DC TAG be expanded??

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Reply to "When will DC TAG be expanded??"

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=jsteele][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=jsteele][quote=Anonymous]Never. Poor kids can get financial aid. DC is broke and isn't going to spend more money to subsidize upper middle class kids' college degrees [/quote]

It's federal money so it doesn't cost DC anything.

In 2021 Eleanor Holmes Norton succeeded in getting the House to pass an expanded program. But, that language was stripped by the Senate. Expanding DC TAG is normally one of Norton's priorities so I am sure she will keep trying. This year she may be distracted with the RFK transfer. You can read the discussion about Norton's previous attempt here:

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/990354.page

I am not sure if she did anything with regard to DC TAG last year. If she did, I didn't hear about it.
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Sh didn't. I kept expecting to see the announcement for an increase to $15,000. I mean, sure, the program was meant to close the gap between in state and OOS tuition, but the exponential rise in tuition makes this a nice grant, but nothing close to par.  One thing people should know...it is now means tested.[/quote]

That's too bad. The point of it was for DC residents to have some parity with the opportunities in the 50 states.[/quote]

It's called UDC. If DC wants a research university, they can fund one. DC Tag should be cancelled or extended to all Americans [/quote]

Then DC can tax MD and VA residents working in DC. [/quote]

A commuter tax is prohibited by the Home Rule Act.

With the declining fiscal picture in DC I would NOT expect this amount to be increased any time soon. [/quote]

Once again, DC TAG is federally funded. It has nothing to do with DC 's fiscal picture.
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But DC should invest more in higher ed. In MD or VA my tax dollars would get me access to a range of more affordable colleges. [/quote]

Virginia has 8.6 million residents, which is more than 10 times D.C.'s population. Maryland has 6.2 million. For D.C. to have even just one campus that's even just the same size as the UMD or UVA flagships, let alone on the same level of quality, would require raising taxes significantly on the residents we have.

UDC does now have a community college branch that's similar in affordability to Montgomery College or Nova Community College, though.[/quote]

Perhaps it is similar in affordability, but not in quality.  MoCo College and NVCC are among the best community colleges in the country.  DC's is among the worst.  [/quote]

At least for schools like these TAG is great…assume it brings the cost to nearly $0.[/quote]
These are not four year colleges. Families that stay in DC through HS deserve a break. The $$ is nominal. If the federal government want to insist we can’t have self determination then they can pony up the pittance to bring college costs on par with the average US state college.[/quote]

This sentiment is silly (and I plan for my kids to graduate from DCPS high schools in a few years). Families don't "deserve" money just for living in D.C. If anything, they should be means-testing this benefit so it isn't primarily giving upper NW residents (like me) a discount on Big 10 schools.[/quote]

Narrator: It is means tested already.[/quote]

Is it? I'm not aware of any income limits on who's eligible for it.[/quote]

Literally means tested for years.

https://osse.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/osse/publication/attachments/Information%20on%20DCTAG%20Maximum%20Income_2023.pdf[/quote]

Ah, I didn't know this because my household earns well under the cap. Which, honestly, is a sign the cap should be lower.[/quote]

DC makes the cap so high so rich people don't have another reason to move to MD or VA. They pay a lot more in taxes over 18+ years than DC "loses" in giving UMC kids some federal DCTAG money.

The more people who use a program, the more broad support there is for it. [/quote]

The political incentives for DCTAG are a complete mess, though -- it's a federal program, so even if every household in D.C. used it, it wouldn't be broadly taken advantage of nationwide, plus the people eligible for it can't vote for someone who has a vote on whether to extend/expand/end/whatever it. The cap being higher or lower has virtually no effect on support for this program among the people who determine its future, none of whom represent anyone who can possibly use it.[/quote]
DC people really do live in a different reality. I don’t think you could have a better example of hand out culture if you tried. What was originally set up as a pity program is now seen as an entitlement.

Here’s a better idea: tell the mayor and the Council to fund UDC at an adequate level. Tell UDC to go out and solicit donations from alumni and corporations. Tell UDC faculty to go out and get grants. Tell UDC to raise tuition. You know, the things that every other state university does to fund itself. [/quote]

UDC will never be adequately funded as the District does not have a large enough tax base. The funding basis for powerhouse state schools is to tax the entire state and redistribute to the university system.

And can you point me to this wealth-off alumni base of UDC?!?! That's a laughable suggestion.

I get that UDC is a long-standing source of pride as an African-American land grant college. But there's soooooo many better options nearby that successfully graduate students on time and have strong professional networks + traditional college experiences - Howard, Bowie, Morgan State, etc. It would be better if DC young adults could just attend those at in-state prices.
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Utter nonsense. The DC budget is over $20 billion dollars. The budget for the entire state of Maryland is $60 billion. The budget for Montgomery County is $7 billion. DC has plenty of money to fund higher education. It just chooses not to. It’s another reason why DC will never be a state. [/quote]

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