Our View: PACT shortfall is state’s problem

By on March 25, 2010 10:45 PM CST
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In short: The state should fully fund PACT, or it is robbing parents of their investments and students of their opportunities.

As it stands right now, many Alabama parents will have to pay out of pocket for tuition that they rightfully believe they have already paid for. The Prepaid Affordable College Tuition program promised parents the opportunity to give their children an affordable college education, and mismanagement by the state is threatening to take that away.

Fortunately, there are now two bills in the Alabama Legislature that would help combat this problem. One introduced in the House would put a 2.5 percent tuition cap on PACT students, while the bill introduced in the Senate would not.

UA President Robert Witt is right in saying the House bill is unfair. PACT students should not have to pay anything beyond what their contract with the program entails. When parents signed up for the plan, they did not sign up for prepaid tuition unless rates increase, or unless there’s an economic crash, or unless the government mismanages its investments. They signed up for affordable tuition and a chance at an education. It would be almost criminal for the government to deny them that.

The state of Alabama may not be in the best economic situation at the moment, but that is not an excuse for betraying the citizens who need all of the help they can get. Students already face an uncertain future in a volatile workforce, and a college education has always been one of the best ways to get ahead. Now is not the time to betray the trust of Alabamians and throw these students and their families out into the cold.

It would also be just another knock on a failing education system in this state. Alabama suffers from an incredible “brain drain,” with many top students and talented young people fleeing the state in droves. Alabama can’t keep its most talented students at home if they can’t afford the rising cost of tuition. PACT is a great way to ensure students stay here, but its failure is a good way to make sure students lose what little faith they had left in Alabama’s devotion to education.

President Witt has done a great job of attracting talented students from all over the country and building UA into an institution that is more respected and revered every day. Unfortunately, our officials in Montgomery don’t always seem to have the same lofty goals and expectations in mind.

Any refusal to completely honor the promises made to PACT students is tantamount to robbery. They would not just be robbing students of their tuition money and their education, but robbing this entire state of its promise.

Our View is the consensus of The Crimson White’s editorial board.

  • http://www.savealabamapact.com Dr. Richard Huckaby

    Save Alabama PACT applauds The Crimson White’s editorial board for making such an independent, well spoken statement that we believe speaks volumes coming from young adults we are fighting so hard to assure continue to populate this state. You see this problem so acutely in focus that it just, honestly, took me two times to read it to understand how well spoken it was. The State of Alabama needs to put education first…solve the PACT program now…its an obligation of the state for Alabama kids…but let’s continue to work together to put more money into education in this state and keep you guys here…you are the heart and soul of Alabama and we thank you so much for such an editorial opinion at a time when honestly, your University and Auburn University are putting some pretty negative commentaries out every day rather than coming to the table to encourage the legislature to find a total solution this session…HB162 is not a total solution.

    We encourage you to continue to follow the progress as this legislative session is winding down…PACT must have a solution this session…please seek out Dr. Witt and Mr. Potera and tell them to stop the attacks against the PACT kids, its not their fault…they just want an education just like you guys. Call us, seek us out…we would love to talk to you all…

    My best regards to you…you have gained my utmost respect by your article.

    Dr. Richard Huckaby
    BSEE, UA, 1978
    DVM, AU, 1995
    Cofounder, VP, Save Alabama PACT
    http://www.SaveAlabamaPACT.com
    huck@savealabamapact.com

  • Cindy Ellison

    I just received a ridiculous phone message from the president of Auburn University insinuating that PACT is the cause for increased tuition at Auburn. We are Auburn Alumni and we have a PACT contract for our 21 year old. I guess PACT is the cause of the recession, too!!! Please….

  • http://www.charleygrimsley.com Charley Grimsley

    Thank you for your wonderful and courageous editorial. When the state created PACT, it was advertised and contracted as guaranteed. Then the PACT board lost hundreds of millions in the stock market, and now we are fighting for the guarantees they promised but have not delivered.

    I am a PACT parent and a former community banker. My analysis shows that compared to high school jobs, if these 45,000 students are allowed to earn college degrees, they will earn over $50 billion in additional income and pay over $6 billion more in state and local taxes. This means fixing PACT is not a bailout. It is an investment that will be repaid many times over.

    This issue is bigger than just PACT. The bigger question is whether or not the State of Alabama is going to be allowed to break its word and breach its contracts. If that happens, it will hurt Alabama’s image around the world, not to mention its credit rating.

    These 45,000 families did not invest in a risky stock market. They bought a contract from a state that promised “tomorrow’s tuition at today’s prices.” Now it’s time for the state to live up to its end of the deal.

    It’s like the Fram oil filter commercial. You can pay me now or pay me later. Later will be in court with a tidal wave of litigation filed by expensive lawyers. Now is the time to fix PACT – in the legislature instead of the courtroom.

    Charley Grimsley
    B.S., Finance, UA, 1977
    http://www.charleygrimsley.com
    charley@charleygrimsley.com

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