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Increasing postsecondary attainment rates is an important economic priority, yet little is known about whether public subsidies can increase college attendance and completion. This paper studies the impact of state budget cuts to higher education on all US public postsecondary institutions between 1990 and 2013. Using a budget shock measure driven by historical reliance on state appropriations, we find large impacts of budget cuts on enrollment and degree completion. We find no evidence that enrollment declines are due to budget cuts being passed through as higher prices-rather, all of the impact is explained by spending cuts.