Poor students got direct grants, which did not have to be paid back.
An additional $200 million a year would be available as direct grants.
If money is available, he said, it would be better spent on direct grants and loans to students.
But city officials say they would prefer that the money came to them in direct grants, rather than through the state.
For those whose income fell below this level, the Government would make direct grants in the amount of the difference.
In addition a large part of spending is provided by direct grants to such authorities.
But it offered them much larger direct grants than the Government has the money to deliver.
The plan would also provide $100 million in direct grants for poor communities seeking to improve their water supply systems.
Bringing it back, perhaps through direct grants, would require raising the national sales tax rate to 21 percent.
Each later Commonwealth realm was created by a direct grant of independence.