Louisiana S Cuts to Higher Education Among Worst in Country

Louisiana’s Cuts to Higher Education among Worst in Country New Center on Budget and Policy Priority Report Shows that Shortchanging Public Colleges and Universities Hurts Students, Communities and the Economy BATON ROUGE – Years of reduced investment by Louisiana in higher education have helped drive up tuition, jeopardizing the ability of many to afford the college education that is key to their long-term financial success and essential to a growing economy. Louisiana has cut funding for higher education by 39.1 percent since 2008 when adjusted for inflation, a decrease of $4,602 per student, according to Funding Down, Tuition Up: State Cuts to Higher Education Threaten Quality and Affordability at Public Colleges, a new report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. As the state has slashed higher education funding, the price of attending public colleges has risen considerably. The average tuition at four-year public colleges in Louisiana has risen by $3,493, or 79.1 percent, since the 2007-08 school year— significantly faster than the growth in median income. For the average student, federal and state aid has not kept pace with rising costs, the report found. “More young people could afford college and gain for themselves and the economy the benefits of greater earnings if states reversed their declining support for higher education,” said Michael Mitchell, senior policy analyst at CBPP and lead author of the report.

Rapidly rising tuition and fees at a time of weak or declining income growth has damaging consequences for families, students, and the state economy. Higher tuition jeopardizes the ability of many to afford the college education that is key to their long term wellbeing. This problem is especially significant for low-income students and students of color, and hurts campus diversity. “Too many students must take on unsustainable levels of debt, and rapidly rising tuition is scaring many low- and middle-income students away from college altogether,” said Jan Moller, director of the Louisiana Budget Project. “Louisiana will be stronger, and our communities will thrive, if college is more affordable for students and their families.” Getting a college degree is increasingly important for professional success and entry into the middle class or beyond. A large and growing share of future jobs will require college-educated workers. And, communities benefit when more residents have college degrees. Areas with highly educated residents attract employers who pay higher wages. Those employees, in turn, use their wages to buy goods and services from others in the community, boosting the area’s economy so the wages of workers of all levels of education are higher, according to the report. “College-educated workers are essential to our economic success,” said Moller. “Louisiana must invest in its colleges and universities now to build the workforce needed to compete in decades to come.” While many states are starting to reinvest in higher education, Louisiana continues to face structural budget deficits that are leading to more cuts. The budget that is before the state Senate calls for another $95 million cut in state support, plus $50 million in additional mandatory fees that students and their families have to pay. Like many states, Louisiana has instituted tax cuts that have left state government without the resources to adequately support public colleges and universities. Rather than boosting economic growth, these policies could hurt the future economy, in part by reducing college attendance and making college harder to afford. “States face a choice of whether to provide tax breaks for powerful interests or return to making a strong investment in higher education and the future workforce,” said Mitchell. ### Funding Down, Tuition Up: State Cuts to Higher Education Threaten Quality and Affordability at Public Colleges, by Michael Mitchell, Michael Leachman, and Kathleen Masterson, is on the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities website: http://www.cbpp.org/research/funding-down-tuition-up