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State Representative Bob Dettmer
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-4124
For more information contact: Austin Bleess 651-296-5529
NEWS COLUMN
TAKING CARE OF OUR OWN ATHLETES FIRST
By Bob Dettmer
State Representative
District 52A
During these current economic times we, as a state, need to look at where every dollar is going. While budgets are being stretched thin and the needs are high, we need to be certain the money we are spending is helping the citizens who pay the taxes. Instead of giving tax dollars to people who are new to the United States, or have not paid taxes here, we should be using it to help the taxpayers of our country.
That is what my legislation, H.F. 1413, is all about. This bill would require schools that are a part of the Minnesota State Colleges and University (MnSCU) system to give athletic scholars that are comprised of taxpayers’ dollars to the citizens of our country before giving them to non-citizens. The American students are the ones who pay taxes in our country and they should be the ones who get this money returned to them, instead of giving it to those who are here to simply attend college.
Let me clear up one common misconception about this bill. My legislation would still allow foreign athletes to receive athletic scholarships from MnSCU schools, but it would require those scholarships to come from private funds. The legislation also would not affect the athletic programs at the University of Minnesota, because none of their athletic scholarships come from tax dollars.
To put this issue into perspective there is about $5.6 million spent on athletic scholarships by all MnSCU schools. That amount includes private and public money. Of that amount just under $459,000, or about 8%, is used for foreign athletes. It is not a lot of money that we are talking about. By assuring taxpayer money goes only to United States citizens it would still leave plenty of money to fund scholarships for foreign athletes out of private money.
In my conversation I had with officials at St. Cloud State they informed me they have a fund of $1.3 million that they use to provide athletic scholarships. Of that amount only $90,000 is from state funds. The rest is made up from various private donations and fund raising.
What message do we send to our United States athletes if we give our taxpayer dollars to those from other countries? I completely agree that private money can be spent however the university sees fit. However, the tax dollars should be focused on our own citizens first.
This legislation is not meant to say foreign athletes cannot receive scholarships, or that schools should not recruit students from other countries. Instead, we should focus our tax dollars on the students who are citizens of our country. It is a common sense proposal that most people can agree on.
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