President Barack Obama officially released his version of the federal budget Wednesday, which included various proposals aimed at keeping higher education affordable across the country, drawing mixed responses from Wisconsin politicians.
The education portion of the budget is designed to address rising tuition costs and student loan debt across the country, according to a release from the White House Office of Communications.
The budget includes a provision that allocates approximately $1 billion to a federal initiative Obama has referred to as a “race to the top” that would give additional funding to colleges and universities that reduce education costs and expand education initiatives, such as research.
Additionally, the budget includes a provision that would take control of student loan interest rates away from Congress and instead tie them to market rates. Proponents of the move say the market interest rate will be lower than the current rate, but others caution the market rate could rise quickly in the future.
U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Wis., said in a statement he supports the majority of Obama’s budget, including its allocations to education and economic development.
“I am particularly pleased that the president’s proposal increases investments in the kind of innovative research and development that is taking place at the University of Wisconsin, while also providing $50 billion for infrastructure projects that will put people back to work,” Pocan said in the statement.
But Republican politicians, including U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., heavily criticized the budget, saying it would only expand the deficit and maintain a negative status quo.
“The president’s budget is such a disappointment because it’s a missed opportunity,” Ryan said. “We need a new approach to meet our generation’s most pressing challenges. I hope the other side will join us in proposing real reforms … [b]ut until then, we need to take steps in the right direction.”
Additionally, U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., said Obama’s budget did not accurately address the depth of the country’s problems, such as health-care and social-security spending.
The president’s budget is only in its preliminary stage and will likely give rise to numerous debates over its provisions in the coming months.
