Rep. Davis Leads #Taxbreaks4students Publicity Campaign

Press Release

On February 27, 2015, Congressman Danny K. Davis (D-IL) announced that he is leading a publicity campaign to encourage eligible students and families to take the education tax breaks for which they qualify. The #TaxBreaks4Students campaign during the week of March 2nd will increase awareness about education tax breaks and encourage students to check out IRS resources to see whether they qualify. It also engages education stakeholders, including colleges, universities, education associations, and student advocacy groups, to help increase understanding of these benefits.

Davis said, "Tax-based education aid represents more than half of all non-loan federal aid, playing an important role in promoting college affordability and completion. Unfortunately, the complexity of education tax benefits makes it difficult for students to understand whether they qualify for a benefit and which benefit best meets their needs. Indeed, a study by the Government Accountability Office showed that 1.5 million tax filers who qualified for either the Tuition and Fees Deduction or the Lifetime Learning Credit did not claim the credit or deduction. Many families do not realize that, even if they did not make enough money to owe taxes, the American Opportunity Tax Credit provides up to $1000 for certain education expenses. I'm proud to join together with critical education stakeholders on this campaign to educate today's students and families about the two education credits likely to help them the most -- the American Opportunity Tax Credit and the Lifetime Learning Credit."

I thank the following partners for their support of this campaign. Illinois partners include: Blackburn University; Chicago State University; City Colleges of Chicago; Columbia College Chicago; DePaul University; Dominican University; Eastern Illinois University; Governors State University; Illinois Association for College Admission Counseling; Illinois Institute of Technology; Illinois State University; Loyola University Chicago; National Louis University; Northeastern Illinois University; Northern Illinois University; Northwestern University; Roosevelt University; South Suburban College; Southern Illinois University System; Triton College; University of Illinois at Chicago; University of Illinois; and Western Illinois University.

National partners include: American Association of Community Colleges (AACC); American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU); The American Council on Education (ACE); American Federation of Teachers (AFT); Asian American and Pacific Islander Association of Colleges and Universities (APIACU); Association of American Universities (AAU); Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT); Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU); Council for Opportunity in Education (COE); Council of Graduate Schools (CGS); Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU); Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP); National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education (NAFEO); National Association of College Stores (NACS); National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO); National Association of Graduate-Professional Students (NAGPS); National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU); National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA); National Council of La Raza (NCLR); National Indian Education Association (NIEA); National Urban League (NUL); The Institute for College Access and Success (TICAS); Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF); United States Student Association (USSA); U.S. PIRG; and Young Invincibles.

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