Many voters learn about referendum ballot questions on election day when they go to the polls. This year, one question in particular will affect the state of  the University of Massachusetts’ community. Question 3 is a ballot initiative that, if passed, will reduce the Massachusetts’ sales tax from 6.25 percent to 3 percent. At first glance this may seem like a welcome relief to our wallets. After all, times are tough. Who wants to pay any more for goods and services than they necessary? This is exactly why you should vote ‘no’ on Question 3.

According to the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, reducing the sales tax to 3 percent would mean $2.5 billion less in state revenue. With the state’s economy still wrestling with the national recession and budget cuts, a $2.5 billion decrease would have dismal effects. Our sales taxes fund essential aspects of our society including public education, roads, parks, healthcare and more. The entire public sector is threatened by this ballot initiative. Public higher education and public education at the K-12 level, specifically, are already struggling to provide quality education in today’s economy. This referendum question threatens to exacerbate this problem and it threatens the education of all public school students in the state.

The 6.25 percent sales tax, which was raised from 5 percent  in 2009, is still low in comparison to other states. In many localities across the nation, sales taxes exceed 7 or even 8 percent. The Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation concludes that, “Of the 45 states with a broad-based sales tax, Massachusetts ranks 43rd in revenues collected per $1000 of income and 35th per capita.” These are taxes that fund the services that create advanced society. Living in a world with public safety, public education and other public services, means we rely on sales taxes for everyday constituent services.

This tax decrease would directly affect the cost of our education at UMass. Less revenue will result in less state funding for all of Massachusetts’ public colleges and universities. We have seen time and time again that when our legislators underfund the University, we the students, are left to pick up the tab. This starkly contrasts the University’s mission statement, “to provide an affordable and accessible education of high quality…” When we don’t get the support we need from the state we get hit with fee hikes that make our public university less accessible and less affordable. The only way to live up to our mission statement is to prioritize education as a right that is accessible to the citizens of Massachusetts, much like our K-12 system. To accomplish this, we must ensure that the responsibility for financing public higher education falls on the state as opposed to individual students and families. With the passage of Question 3, it is certain that the burden will be put on the students to fill the $2.5 billion gap. The tax cut could result in severe monetary cuts to the UMass system and therefore staff and faculty layoffs, fee increases, a reduction in academic programs and services as well as larger class sizes.

In times of economic turmoil, it is even more important for the Commonwealth to fund public higher education. An educated population is the only way to rebuild our economy. The Public Higher Education Network of Massachusetts (PHENOM) notes that over 80 percent of Massachusetts’ college graduates stay and work in the Commonwealth. These graduates pay taxes and “build and work in businesses that sustain the economy Every time a fee is raised, that is one more barrier preventing Massachusetts’ residents from receiving an education. Especially in light of our jobless economy, we must break down barriers to college access for our state’s young people, not build them. We already have to fight for our right to an education and face fee hikes due to our poor economy.

With the passage of Question 3, our hopes to improve our economy and have affordable education in the commonwealth will deteriorate. The state will not be able to provide us with the funding we need, our fees will go up, and our programs will get cut. We will be paying more for fewer services and lower quality education. Protect our education and our economy by voting ‘No’ on Question 3 today.

Amanda Jusino is a Collegian columnist. She can be reached at [email protected].