Bill gives in-state tuition to foreign professionals, families in Washington on visa

[mule_train]

Source: Seattle Times

Seattle Times (WA) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Jun. 22--A little-noticed measure passed by the Legislature and signed into law by the governor will extend in-state tuition rates at Washington state colleges and universities to foreign professionals at companies such as Microsoft and Amazon, as well as to their children and spouses.


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Under House Bill 1487, which takes effect July 1, the foreign workers would qualify for the same tuition rate as state residents if they have been in the state at least a year on certain kinds of temporary work visas, such as the H-1B.

The measure passed amid a roiling budget crisis and hundreds of millions of dollars in cutbacks to higher education. It was nicknamed the "Microsoft subsidy bill" by some lawmakers who say the software giant and its workers surely could afford to pay the higher tuition rates.


Read more: http://www.tmcnet.com/usubmit/-bill-gives-in-state-tuition-foreign-professionals-families-/2009/06/22/4237430.htm

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Just for Washington state, but I can see this being picked up nationally

[MindPilot]

1. hereafter to be known as the Fuck American Workers Act of 2009

Can't educate our own people--that would be "socialism"--but when it comes to making sure there are plenty of job-stealing parasites from India, money is no object.

[lindisfarne]

2. This is ludicrous. It should not have passed. Only applies to WA state, thank goodness.

This really should be in the State forum, not LBN. It's not LBN - the bill passed a while ago and takes effect July 1.

[LisaM]

21. Well...

I live in Washington state and this was quietly kept under the radar until it passed. So in that sense, it is "breaking" news.

[Joanne98]

3. Oh good. More money for other people.

That's one of the benefits of being an Empire.

[SheilaT]

4. Very good.

These are people who are living and paying taxes in the state. Why shouldn't they get in-state tuition?

My gripe is against military people, many of whom make sure their official residence is a state with no income tax, and then, because they've had an address in another state, get that other state to allow their children to attend the public university as an in-state student.

I have a good friend who was a college professor for a number of years who honestly thought there should be no in-state out-of-state tuition differences at any of the public universities.

[w4rma]

5. Very STUPID. (nt)

[atreides1]

6. Excuse Me?

Quick lesson, military people do pay taxes in states that they are stationed in. What do you call sales taxes? Property taxes if they purchase a house?

Spouses who work pay state taxes, and if the one serving gets a second job, surprise, the state takes out taxes from their wages.

Generally, the state where the military member entered the service is considered to be their home of record, and changing it isn't that easy.

As an example, my home of record was Hawaii when I enlisted, the state of Hawaii still took out taxes from my military pay, but while my wife and children were considered residents of whatever state I was stationed in, I was not.

If my wife was employed the state would have collected taxes from her wages, and my children would have qualified for in-state tuition if they were actually old enough to attend college.

And if you have any evidence of military people "whom make sure their official residence is a state with no income tax", I would be very interested in where I could find the actual numbers.

Thank you

[SheilaT]

10. I've known a surprising number of

military types who managed to make Texas or Florida their home state, even if they never actually lived there. I'm not going to name them for you.

Yeah, they pay property taxes if they buy a home, but not if they live on base housing. And in the cases I know, they've never paid state income tax. I've always paid state income taxes, plus property taxes where I've owned homes. In the OP, if the foreign workers in question have bought a home, they too are paying property taxes. Plus the usual sales taxes.

The number of those who are foreign residents who now qualify for in-state tuition under this bill is probably fewer than a hundred students.

Several years back Kansas went through this nonsense when the state legislature, rightly in my opinion, allowed in-state tuition for the children of illegal immigrants, even if those children had not been born in this country. The important thing there was to qualify, the kids needed to have spent at least three years in a Kansas school and be admitted to the public university/college under the same qualifications as anyone else.

Maybe thirty students per year qualified. Probably fewer. The way the right wing exploded over this you'd think someone was giving these kids totally free education, complete with room and board and spending money. Part of the argument against this was that in-state tuition students somehow were a drain on the state coffers. The real issue is that the public is extremely unwilling to properly fund the public universities and colleges in this country, and the burden has fallen more and more to the students and their families.

I'm rather shocked at the almost universal disapproval of this thing. Where's the sense of helping each other out, of compassion, that I thought was part of DU?

[Mrs. Ted Nancy]

14. Rules for military residence in Texas

Here are some of the factors that are used:

Written intent to abandon previous domicile and establish it in Texas
Physical presence of yourself (include duration) and your family here
Registering to vote here
Registering your car her
Getting a Texas drivers license
Proof of birth in Texas
Completing a DD Form 2058 (change of domicile) for military records
Bank/investment assets here etc.


http://74.125.95.132/search?q=cache:_LEvBmJGwvEJ:familysupportgoodfellow.org/files/Residency.pdf+establishing+military+residency+in+texas&cd=7&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us">Establishing Residence in Texas

I grew up near Tinker AFB. It was not uncommon for air force personnel to keep their residence in Texas even though they were stationed in Oklahoma for lengthy periods. I remember my mom getting really pissed when she learned this.

[NashVegas]

19. So Commissaries Charge Sales Tax, Now?

I don't begrudge the deal you're getting. But please ... just because you want to answer back at someone who does, could you maybe reduce a certain factor?

[lindisfarne]

8. In most states, the state pays roughly 2/3 of the tuition for in-state folks. The parents of these

kids have paid state taxes (or in WA, various fees & property taxes; no state income taxes) to support the state government for years. Obviously, sometimes people move from state to state but that balances out, and taxes are paid to some US state.

In the case of H1B and other workers on visas: not only are they driving down wages for workers in the state, they haven't paid into the state system for years. They're getting a benefit without having paid their fair share. Workers on visas aren't supposed to be in the US for unlimited periods - so they won't have paid in for years. (There are some who qualify for green cards, but that is a different category).

Additionally, the U of WA is suffering from budget cutbacks and is unable to admit state residents who in previous years would have been admitted. The kids whose parents have paid in for years should get priority.

If employers think it is important, they can subsidize their employees' kids' college educations. (Oh wait - they don't do it for the US kids).

[brentspeak]

11. Dumb post of the day

Your "gripe" is against military people??

"Many of whom make sure their official residence is a state with no income tax..."

You know this...how?

[Pharlo]

13. How can you compare a member of the US armed services -

who signed on to defend the UNITED STATES (plural - which includes whichever state to which their child is attending school) with their life, to an H1-B Visa holder who has been in the US a "minimum of one year".

Oh, but wait, you're not. You see nothing wrong with denying the child of a US armed forces member an education while granting that privilege to a non-citizen.

Just out of curiousity, are you posting from the MS boardroom?

[EFerrari]

22. The poster is comparing tax payers to non tax payers. n/t

[Bill McBlueState]

16. eh

Your first paragraph makes a great point. Your second could be true, but it's a pretty big distraction from the OP.

[Romulox]

7. Just another way to force working people to subsidize their corporate masters.

[OhioChick]

9. Speechless here......that's fucked up. n/t

[mule_train]

12. "passed amid a roiling budget crisis and hundreds of millions of dollars in cutbacks to higher educa

boy, that says it all doesn't it?

I need to learn how to snap my fingers like Bill Gates does

[Bill McBlueState]

15. If they meet the residency requirement, why not?

I'm surprised this even required a new law.

From http://www.washington.edu/students/reg/residency :

To be classified or reclassified as residents, for tuition and fee purposes, students must establish a bona fide domicile in the state of Washington primarily for purposes other than education for the period of one year immediately prior to classification as residents.

There's nothing there about federal citizenship or immigration status.

[No Elephants]

17. Never knew Gates was such a left winger.

[eilen]

18. So long as actual US citizens of Washington State Residence are given priority in admissions

I don't mind. They should be first in line.

yeah, that means the H1B families are in the back of the bus but shit, you think our kids would be given any quarter in India? Oh wait, not too many American families getting choice tech jobs there either.

Next story: State of Washington legislature renames Redmond "New Bombay".

[LisaM]

20. This is absolutely outrageous

and I intend to call my representatives today.

[EFerrari]

23. If these people are paying WA State taxes, they should get the same

benefit from those taxes as any other resident.