Letter: Rod Blum votes against education

Congressman Rod Blum claims to be proud of his support of the tax plan which recently passed the House of Representatives. Unfortunately, Blum continues to prove how out of touch he is with regular Iowans.

Rep. Blum has shown us that he wants to make a college education more difficult for many Iowans. Blum's tax plan eliminates the deductibility of college loans, affecting thousands of Iowa students. This change in tax law, coupled with the substantial tuition increases that occurred in Iowa's public universities, make a college education impossible for many Iowans.

In addition, Rep. Blum voted to make graduate school more expensive. Some graduate students currently receive a tuition waiver in exchange for doing research or teaching classes. The GOP tax plan would now include the tuition waiver as taxable income. This change could result in a 400 percent increase in students' tax burdens. Rep. Blum's vote will mean fewer researchers, teachers, and innovators - an unfortunate loss for Iowa.

The Lifetime Learning Credit, which assists Iowans in retraining and vocational training, also has been eliminated by this tax plan. As the job market changes, Iowans will be faced with additional hurdles, making it difficult to get the retraining that is needed to find jobs that provide a livable wage for Iowa families.

Rep. Blum has shown us what he values and it is not education.

Cindy Garlock

Cedar Rapids