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O’Malley to lay out plan for debt-free college

FILE - In this June 26, 2015, file photo, Democratic presidential candidate. former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley gives a foreign policy speech at TruCon15, a conference hosted by the Truman National Security Project in Washington. O’Malley is calling the high cost of college a "crisis" as he lays out a goal of debt-free tuition for all students at public colleges and universities within five years if elected president. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File) FILE - In this June 26, 2015, file photo, Democratic presidential candidate. former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley gives a foreign policy speech at TruCon15, a conference hosted by the Truman National Security Project in Washington. O’Malley is calling the high cost of college a "crisis" as he lays out a goal of debt-free tuition for all students at public colleges and universities within five years if elected president. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)

By Associated Press July 8, 2015 1 min read

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) – Democrat Martin O’Malley is calling the high cost of college a “crisis” as he lays out a goal of debt-free tuition for all students at public colleges and universities within five years if elected president.

The former governor of Maryland will outline his proposal Wednesday morning in New Hampshire. Focusing on college costs could help O’Malley among younger voters in New Hampshire, where the average student loan debt burden is the nation’s highest.

But he’s not alone in addressing the problem. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders has released a plan for free college tuition, and Hillary Rodham Clinton is emphasizing the need to lower college costs.

O’Malley’s plan calls for increasing federal matching money to encourage states to invest more in higher education and substantially lower tuition rates.