Giving Californians Access to High-Paying Jobs

College Education: A Necessity

• For most well-paying jobs, a bachelor degree is a minimum requirement.
• A college degree is the new high school diploma.
• Tuition costs continue to increase and student debt totals more than $1.3 trillion nationwide. 

Access to a quality college education is paramount to building a strong middle class in California. We need to ensure that Californians fill the high-paying jobs of the new skilled workforce being built across our State. As entire industries are lost to automation, and competition becomes global, Californians need to have the tools necessary to compete. A college degree is the new high school diploma. For most young Californians, a bachelors degree is the minimum requirement in achieving the middle class lifestyle our parents and grandparents enjoyed with a high-school diploma. Unfortunately, fewer of our public universities are accepting in-state students, and many of those who are accepted are met with ever-increasing tuition costs and mounting student debt; a $1.3 trillion crisis nationwide. 

Economic Demand & A Path Forward  

• California will need 1.1 million additional bachelor’s degrees by 2030 to meet economic demand. 
• California Master Plan for Higher Education laid the foundation for Universal Access to Tuition-Free College. 

To build a strong middle-class, to maintain economic growth, to give our citizens the skills necessary to compete globally, we must make tuition-free college a priority. Today, there are millions of high-paying jobs that are going unfilled and causing companies to recruit out-of-state or internationally. Beyond current demand, California will need 1.1 million additional bachelor’s degrees by 2030, and we believe California's youth should fill these high-paying jobs. 

In 1960, the original California Master Plan for Higher Education was designed with the mission to guarantee all California citizens access to a UC, CSU or California Community College, tuition-free. The plan laid the framework for the best public higher-education system in the world, but we have not lived up to the plan's original intent to provide universal in-state access and free in-state tuition. With college education more important than ever, now is the time to take action. 

Our Plan to Provide Universal Access to Tuition-Free College  

We will provide all California high school graduates access to a quality college education without taking on student debt. We can do this by returning to the original framework of the California Master Plan for Higher Education, and providing all California students access to tuition free UC, CSU or Community College upon high school graduation. Those who graduate Community College would be given an opportunity to continue their education at a UC or CSU school. This bold plan can be paid for by a 1 percent tax on annual California household incomes of $1 million or more. This, combined with existing federal and state financial aid will eliminate tuition and fees for all Californians studying at UC, CSU or community colleges in the state.