That provision would tax tuition waivers that schools such as Harvard provide graduate students—money the students never see—significantly raising their taxable incomes. Under the GOP plan, a $49,000 tuition waiver would bring his taxable income to about $86,000, raising his overall tax bill to about $13,000. The tuition provision is one of numerous tax breaks the GOP plan seeks to eliminate to bring down overall rates. Under the current tax code, the government doesn’t tax these waivers, which students never see in their bank accounts. By overtaxing graduate students, they say, the tax bill could deter students looking to advance scientific research.

Source: Wall Street Journal November 30, 2017 18:56 UTC