Comments on: Stimulus for Students

By: ProfSwitzer

ProfSwitzer — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 22:17:51 +0000

According to the White House web page (http://www.whitehouse.gov/agenda/education/), the AOTC is still in the works. The LLC is still active — unlike the Hope credit, students don’t have to be enrolled at least 1/2 time to receive it. Also, it applies per household, not per student. I haven’t read anything about the LLC being increased, so I’m assuming it’s staying put at $1,000 per household (the LLC credit currently is for 20% of educational expenses, up to $5,000 in expenses). The LLC is most helpful for students (mostly non-traditional students) taking only one course a semester, since they won’t get the Hope credit. And most importantly, if your parents are claiming the Hope credit, they can’t claim the LLC also — it’s one or the other.

By: Matt Nicklay

Matt Nicklay — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 21:17:33 +0000

Great post. I forwarded this to my parents, as we had a conversation about how the stimulus will affect students recently. However, I wrote a policy essay about educational tax credits for an internship application back in November, and at that time the Obama plan was the “American Opportunity Tax Credit”, where students had to do 100 hours of community service to get a $4,000 tax credit, for family’s with incomes under $250,000. Is the American Opp Tax Credit plan none existent anymore? What about the Lifetime Learning Credit? Has it been replaced by the Hope Education Credit? BTW, I love the names chosen by the Obama administration for all of these programs, makes me feel so warm and fuzzy inside.

By: Zach

Zach — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 06:21:33 +0000

Prof Switzer,
Good blog. Especially the portion about how Charlie Rangel whose in charge of it doesn’t get what is going on either. I am a student who has tax liability but only of a couple of hundred (woohoo) so I still let my parents claim it still because it is not enough for me to get my undies all in a bunch over when I get most of that money back somehow.