Assemblyman Karl Brabenec (R,TCN-Deerpark) today attended a press conference held by Assembly Minority Leader Brian M. Kolb (R,C,I,Ref-Canandaigua) to call for a number of higher education reforms that would benefit a wider swath of students than Gov. Cuomo’s taxpayer-funded college tuition proposal. The proposals include raising the household income threshold to qualify for the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) to $125,000, increasing the maximum TAP award amount and overall amount for each student, and allowing for an income tax deduction of both principal and interest on student loan payments.

“Free and unbridled giveaways like Gov. Cuomo’s SUNY and CUNY free tuition proposal are aimless and do nothing to help graduate students pursuing an advanced degree or recent graduates who are struggling to pay off their student loans,” Brabenec said. “TAP hasn’t increased in over a decade and we need to stop penalizing, or at least tacitly refusing, to help those students who want to achieve their dreams and complete a graduate program. A little bit of investment now will pay dividends to society later.”