Alma Sen. Vinehout proposes free tuition to two-year, UW colleges

A bill for free tuition for all interested in attending two-year schools in about to make it’s way through the Wisconsin legislature.

Kathleen Vinehout, the Wisconsin Sen. from Alma, proposed the bill for those who went to attend a state school or tech college.

“The idea is to open wide the doors of higher education so that anyone who wants to go to college doesn’t have to see finances as a barrier,” Vinehout said.

To pay for the bill, Vinehout would eliminate the manufacturing portion of the manufacturers and ag. tax credit. Those credits would save be between $300-350 million.

“The amount of money that comes in on this tax credit is about exactly the amount of money it would take to provide free tuition,” Vinehout said.

Vinehout says it would help the economy, as the jobs being created are those that need just a two-year degree.

“Part of the econommy that is growing are those pople that will take jobs with some background in college but don’t necesarily have a four-year degree,” she said.