Governor Andrew Cuomo teamed up Tuesday with former Democratic Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders to announce an ambitious plan to provide free tuition for hundreds of thousands of students in the State and City University systems. State House Reporter Zack Fink has the details.
He made the announcement alongside Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders at LaGuardia Community College in Long Island City, Queens.
Sanders made reducing student debt a cornerstone of his unsuccessful campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination.
Under Cuomo's Excelsior Scholarship Program, students would be eligible for free tuition if their household makes less than $125,000 a year.
The free tuition would not be available to undocumented immigrants looking to attend the schools.
Both Cuomo and Sanders say the financial barriers to higher education must come down.
"It is incredibly expensive, and the debt is so high it's like starting a race with an anchor tied to your leg," Cuomo said.
"It is basically insane to tell the young people of this country, we want you to go out and get the best education you can. We want you to get the jobs of the future. Oh but by the way after you leave school, you're gonna be 30, 50, 100,000 dollars in debt," Sanders added.
Tuition at four-year SUNY schools is $6,470 for state residents; at two-year community colleges the cost is $4,350. Tuition at CUNY schools is $6,330 per year.
Cuomo's program would still require legislative approval, but Cuomo hopes to begin a three-year rollout starting this fall.