02/16/2009 - Senator Bayh Talks About College Tax Credit (MyWabashValley.com)

Senator Bayh Talks About College Tax Credit
Reported by: David Shepherd

United States' Senator Evan Bayh was in the Valley Monday promoting a new college education tax credit. That credit is just a small part of president Obama's stimulus plan.

Speaking to reporters at Hulman Airport, Senator Bayh said the American Opportunity Tax Credit will benefit students who want to attend college.

"What we're trying to do here is do things that will help families today and create jobs today but also do some things that will help the economy in the larger term," Bayh said.

During his stop in Terre Haute, the senator introduced the Lang family; a middle class family with 2 students in college. One of those students is ISU sophomore Darin Lang. He says he has high hopes for the tax credit.

"I'm hoping it will give us more money in our pocket and make it easier to pay for a college education and give me less loans at the end so I can get focused on my career and once I do graduate, put more money into the economy," Lang said.

With a 25 hundred dollar college tax credit available for 76 thousand Hoosier students, the stimulus aims to have a long term effect on higher education.

Tara Singer from ISU says the bill won't only generate tax cuts for students:

"The new bill allows for education expenses to include book purchases so with an average expense of close to $500 per semester, per student, that is significant for families," said Singer.

While Senator Bayh admits the bill is not perfect, he says he's encouraged by it's passage. He hopes it will have a positive affect, not only on Americans, but specifically Hoosiers in his state.

While the tax credit is just a small part of President Obama's stimulus plan, Senator Bayh hopes Hoosiers can start seeing some of those benefits in the near future.