Education finance bill provokes controversy
By John Teschner | March 7, 2000The U.S. Senate passed a controversial - and expensive - college education finance bill Thursday that may face opposition because of one section that critics say would benefit only well-off families. The $4.3 billion legislation uses tax breaks to help students and families save for college tuition, pay back college loans and attend graduate school. While these aspects of the bill have met with little dispute, controversy surrounds a section which allows parents to put up to $2,000 a year into a tax-free, federal government-sponsored savings account specially earmarked for their children's education.