Times are tough. The worst of this recession may be over, but economic experts say recovery will be slow. In the meantime, many American cities face severe budget strains. In Pittsburgh, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl has come up with a creative solution to help solve his budget problems, but it’s not a good one. Ravenstahl has proposed a “Fair Share Tax,” which is essentially a student tax. The mayor wants to add a one percent tax on college tuition. It is estimated that students in his city would pay up to $400 more a year. This is an awful idea.
Ravenstahl’s justification for the tax is that students use city services without paying for them — but so do tourists. And tourists are not struggling to pay for an education. Why not tax them or some other group? This tax will be painful for students, especially those on scholarships. And as The Eagle reported, “Should an identical policy be implemented in the District, AU undergraduate students would be obliged to pay $344.56 per year in taxes, based on one percent of this year’s tuition rate at AU, which is $34,456.” For some AU students, this might sound reasonable, but many of us are pinching every penny these days.
Besides, isn’t this taxation without representation? Many students who go to college in Pittsburgh don’t live there. They don’t vote there. However, they do shop in the city, and when they do, they pay sales tax. This should be enough. Ravenstahl should realize that no student will want to attend college in his city if his additional tax is implemented. Clearly, the mayor must find a way to bring in revenue, but he must not do it on the backs of 100,000 young people pursuing higher education.
