<p>Let’s use the same reasoning in reverse. Since my two kids are away in other cities in college and only come home for short vacations between terms (not even summer when the go to other places to work)…I think <em>we</em> should be give a CREDIT on our taxes here at home for each kid in the amount of $300 each. Simply put, they are NOT using ANY of the town services here.</p>
<p>Moderator’s Note
I have merged the three threads in the Parents Forum/Cafe into this one. Hope no one’s confused!</p>
<p>Chedva
Moderator</p>
<p>All of these students already pay taxes to Rhode Island, because Rhode Island has a 7% sales tax. I suspect many of them also work in Rhode Island, and pay state income taxes.</p>
<p>I’m sorry, but now they want to tax you for going to college? What’s next, the doctor won’t deliver you from your mother’s womb until you pay your birth tax?</p>
<p>I’m not one to favor imposing taxes for too many reasons, but if it is a choice between paying $150 and losing or reducing important state/city services, such as police, fire, street cleaning, etc., then might it be worth the money in order to keep the area around the schools safe, vibrant and attractive? Just a question . . .</p>
<p>Most universities that I’ve been around have their own police forces and I assume that they clean their own streets as part of their private property. Everyone is trying to squeeze everyone else today. A good faith effort to clean out the corruption would go a long way to restoring the belief that new taxes aren’t being wasted. Sadly, politicians seem headed in the opposite direction.</p>
<p>BCEagle</p>
<p>But they don’t often have their own fire departments; prosecutors; hospitals; criminal courts; ambulances or police forces large enough to deal with 80,000 people attending a football game or 15,000 for graduation. Universities even if they are responsible for their own roads put pressure on public highways. It is also an open question as to whether voluntary contributions match the taxes that could be raised if non-taxable land used by universities was a revenue source. </p>
<p>It’s an interesting question as to how much university contributes to a locality versus how much it costs that locality.</p>
<p>Most economic impact studies (the value of sports teams/stadiums, universities, olympics etc.) are self serving and filled with untestable assumptions. So it is difficult to say whether a university adds or subtracts value from a community. it depends on how you look at it. </p>
<p>In the case of Providence, though, I think one can easily say that Brown alone brings in a lot of $$. After all, most of the tuition paid by students gets spent locally, benefiting the town in many ways. But who knows what the balance is.</p>
<p>I can safely predict, though, that you will see a rise in voting registration in Providence by Brown students, and I suspect a rise in voting by them. It is interesting to think about whether the mayor factored that into his decision. After all, 25,000 new voters voting as a block can make a big difference in a city the size of Providence.</p>
<p>So on top of the one billion dollars per year these institutions generate in economic activity for the City of Providence, and the 5% of the population they employ, and the 2.4 million per year they are already paying as per an agreement with Mayor Cicilline’s administration in 2003, now he wants more so the “students have a vested interest in the city?” If he thinks taxing each student $300 per year is the way to do it, he must be the Mayor of Fantasyland! He should just come out and say we need the money and this is a quick way for us to get it and not try to make it seem as if this is a way for college students to become more connected with the city. That’s just a ridiculous statement.</p>
<p>I’m sure that the college students also do a lot of community service that benefits the city.</p>
<p>Totally correct, northstarmom. My D goes to Providence College. Community service is an important part of college life for many students there. In fact, it is part of the mission statement of the college. D participated in PC Urban Action prior to the start of school in August. There was a direct benefit to the Providence community as the students performed outdoor service projects such as (public) park cleanup and beautification. Addtionally, the college participates in other worthy causes such as Habitat for Humanity, ESL and Adult Literacy Programs, as well as Hospital, Elderly, Children’s and Hunger Outreach Programs to name a few. I’m sure Brown, RISD and Johnson and Wales students particpate in similar programs as well. In my opinion, that is the way to make students feel more connected to the community, not a $300 tax.</p>
<p>How’s this proposal different from other ‘passive’ taxing? Consider the taxing of hotel rooms or the NYC tax that’s required by city workers…Not really advocating such a tax, but I do understand how strapped cities would look toward the colleges/parents/students for some relief. Public schools in such areas lose significant income as well. If business/industry stood in the space occupied by Brown, RISD, J/W and Providence College, the city’s tax base would increase substantially. </p>
<p>No doubt the institutions contribute to the community in many worthwhile ways, but the city needs help paying their firefighters, police force, sanitary workers, etc. Also, don’t think the fact that students don’t typically vote in local elections is lost on 'city fathers! ’ Such a tax would have fewer ramifications at the polls than increasing taxes for those who reside in Providence permanently…</p>
<p>This looks to me sort of like a “bed tax” or “hotel tax.” </p>
<p>Boston also has a very high amount of land that is owned by colleges/universities and by hospitals, all of it exempt from property taxes. But the universities do make voluntary payments in lieu of taxes, with the understanding that they are contributing to police/fire/roads etc. Boston’s solution has been for the Mayor to occasionally very publicly remind the universities of all the services the city supplies, to ensure that they continue to make “voluntary” payments.</p>
<p>But I agree that Universities provide a huge benefit to the cities they reside in. In Providence, for example: “The four schools generate more than $1 billion a year in economic activity, said Daniel Egan, president of the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Rhode Island. They employ nearly 9,000 people in a city of roughly 172,000.” </p>
<p>I know cities are hurting and looking for revenue wherever they can find it. And I’m sure the Mayor is thinking: if you’re paying $40,000/year to attend college, what’s another $150?</p>
<p>But I just think it’s a bad idea, and going to alienate students and make them less likely to volunteer to help their surrounding communities.</p>
<p>I wonder how Mayor Cicilline would like it if all 20,000 of these college students stayed on campus for a few weeks. Would the sight of all those empty restaurants, bars and stores in the city give him food for thought? Just wondering…</p>
<p>If the Mayor of Providence, Rhode Island has his way, students at Brown University and Providence College will pay a per head $150 tax. Is that fair and just? Would such a tax be deductible on a non-resident’s tax filing back home [like a commuter tax]? </p>
<p>heraldextra.com</p>
<p>I don’t think so – it is not structured as an income tax.</p>