Dee DeQuattro
ddequattro@abc6.com
To manage Rhode Island's dreaded "brain drain" one lawmaker has a creative solution; pay college students to stay.
Senator Ryan Pearson said the best way to keep college students in the Ocean State after college graduation is to offer them tax credits to stay. He has proposed legislation that would give college graduates who remain in RI tax credits for up to ten years. The credit would be based on the size of the student's outstanding student loans and would be applied toward their Rhode Island income tax.
Pearson said the tax credit would not only reverse the trend of RI student fleeing the Ocean State to find work elsewhere but it would also help make student loan debt more manageable for young people.
