Hundreds Of Pittsburgh Students Fight Proposed Tax

RAMIT PLUSHNICK-MASTI

PITTSBURGH (AP) — A proposal to impose a first-of-its-kind 1 percent tuition tax on Pittsburgh's 65,000 college students brought more than 150 to council Monday to assail what is being promoted as the only way to generate revenue in an almost bankrupt city.

"This economy and job market have made it hard enough as it is," Mackenzie Farone, a 22-year-old graduate student and employee of Point Park University told a rally ahead of the public hearing.

Students, she said, live, play and often work in the city, paying myriad taxes.

"And we are the ones that pay the drink tax," she grinned, referring to a 7 percent poured drink tax imposed by the county nearly two years ago.

Earlier this month, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl revealed a tuition tax would be imposed to fill a $15 million gap in the budget.

Pittsburgh, like many towns and cities, enjoys the jobs and prestige created by its universities, but suffers a cash crisis since the nonprofits are tax exempt. As a result, Ravenstahl said, the institutions do not pay their "fair share" for city services.

Ravenstahl says the tax would amount to just over $130 per student annually, far less than the $500 tuition hike University of Pittsburgh students face this year.