There are 3.5M people coming out of high school each year. Let's assume everybody goes to college. Assume that 75% go to a community college (or similar institution) @ ~$10k and 25% go to a four-year college @ $50k. That equates to spending $70B/yr. However, students would be in school anywhere from 2-4 years, taking that number probably north of $150B. I don't know if these assumptions are right, but they're probably not that far out of the ballpark.

In economics, making things free can be a concern since it tends to lead to overconsumption. That was my initial concern about the idea -- as well as cost. But today price is the rationing mechanism for many and that's not necessarily ideal for a good like education, which can create benefits for the economy and society (if students are studying the right things and actually learning them).

In addition to cost, another concern is having adequate capacity for everyone to go. That would take a while to develop.

When Bernie Sanders proposed free education, I thought it was a pie-in-the-sky idea (along with some of his other proposals). But it's interesting to examine the other side of the argument at least.

[Post edited by HoozOnTop at 07/24/2017 2:29PM]