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Tom Reed unveiled a new proposal to make college education more affordable for middle class families.

“Having student loan debt myself and being the father of two teenage kids, I understand the burden that paying for college can be on a family,” said Reed. “I care about ensuring anyone with the desire to educate themselves can receive a fair chance at making that happen without being prevented because of the cost.”

Reed’s proposal would require colleges and universities with endowments larger than 1 billion dollars to distribute a portion of that money as scholarships for students from working and middle class families or face heavy tax penalties.
 
“Tuition, fees and room and board expenses continue to rise above the rate of inflation year after year,” Reed continued. “In the meantime, colleges and universities across the country are harboring stockpiles of money that should be used to help keep these costs in check and we must hold universities accountable for their spending. In light of record high student loan debt, we have to begin turning things around for the sake of the financial stability of our country.”
 
Reed went on to call for increased transparency from institutions of higher learning by advocating for the expansion of salary disclosure requirements.  His proposal would require all colleges and universities that participate in federal student aid programs to publicly disclose the salary of any employee earning $200,000 or more.
 
“This is just another step toward cost containment. If a university can pay their employees this well, they can probably afford to make some adjustments in their spending to keep costs for students low,” said Reed.
 
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