Senator Jeff Merkley (D. OR) recently had this to say about the Pay It Forward plan:
http://www.kval.com/...
On Friday, Senator Merkley spoke to a crowd in the UO Library, hoping to address some of those concerns.
“This isn't a loan. This is a contract to pay a share of your income. And, these details can be worked out … we'll wrestle with the details, but we need the vision.” Merkley said.
The senator said he doesn't know how it will come together just yet. With the national average of college debt climbing to $24,000 per student, he hopes to make a proposal at the nation’s capitol sometime next month. - KVAL, 8/10/13
Here's a little more background info:
http://www.registerguard.com/...
The “Pay It Forward” model would allow students to attend state colleges without paying any tuition up front. Instead, they would commit a small percentage of their future incomes to repaying the state over a couple of decades.
The idea drew national media attention last month after the state Legislature passed a bill to study the feasibility of such a model.
One of the issues that has arisen with the concept is the question of how Oregon, or other states, would find the money to cover the tuition of the first wave of students until enough graduated students start contributing a portion of their incomes to the system.
Merkley’s bill, which he expects to introduce in September, essentially proposes to convert dollars provided now under federal subsidized Stafford loans to those startup costs in a small number of states that want to experiment with “Pay it Forward.” The states would have to cover the remaining initial costs.
The Oregon Democrat said Thursday that, while many of the finer points of his legislation still need to be figured out, he hopes that such a pilot project initially could be used by 50,000 to 100,000 students. - The Register-Guard, 8/9/13
Here's a few more specifics about the Pay It Forward plan:
http://www.oregonlive.com/...
Merkley said his legislation proposes diverting a portion of student loan money into a pilot program states could participate in to see how well the Pay it Forward concept works.
Steve Hughes, executive director of the Working Families Party in Oregon, which helped develop the idea, said Merkley talked about the pilot program reaching 50,000 to 100,000 students in states around the country.
Senate Education Chairman Mark Hass, D-Portland, said he is concerned about a number of potential problems with a Pay it Forward program. He noted the difficulty of getting students to pay back loans for more than two decades and that they could still face difficult debts to pay living expenses while they are in college.
Still, Hass said he would not oppose a federal program to help Oregon test the value of Pay it Forward. "I would welcome it as an experiment," he said, "see what happens, work the bugs out." - The Oregonian, 8/9/13
The Pay It Forward plan wasn't the only thing Merkley discussed at the University of Oregon:
http://dailyemerald.com/...
Another piece of his lecture centered on aiding the economy by suggesting more land development and infrastructure projects.
“We can do a lot more with roads and bridges and high voltage lines to transmit wind energy and a whole source of other forms of infrastructure,” he said.
The Senator engaged the mostly elderly crowd with incisive plans, peppered with jokes, and received a standing ovation at its conclusion. After a brief intermission, the Roseburg-native returned for a Q&A with the audience. The questions varied as well, touching on diverse topics like the Israel-Palestine conflict or Keystone XL pipeline.
“If we’re going to get a handle on [global warming] we have to reduce the slice in the energy pie that is fossil fuels,” Merkley said, “and within that we have to be willing to forgo the dirtiest forms [of fuel], and tar sands are one of the dirtiest forms.”
Fielding a question on marriage equality, Merkley stated he was optimistic that, with two State senators who support it, the constitution should reflect it.
“I thought I was the first individual to campaign for the senate supporting full marriage equality, and then I found out Senator [Ron] Wyden had actually talked about it when he first ran,” Merkley said. “So you have a united senate team behind full marriage of equality. I really hope of November of next year is the year we will eliminate this blight, if you will, on this form of discrimination that’s embedded in our constitution.” - The Daily Emerald, 8/9/13
If you would like more information on the Pay It Forward plan, please contact Senator Merkley's office for more details:
http://www.merkley.senate.gov/...