Just weeks after launching his campaign in the 2016 presidential race, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders presented a free college tuition bill on Capitol Hill.

On Tuesday, the 73-year-old Vermont senator introduced the "College for All Act," which would mandate all four-year public colleges and universities to provide free tuition to undergraduates.

According to Sanders, the initiative would be similar to the pricing systems used in countries like Germany, Denmark and Sweden, which provide free or inexpensive higher education for students. In contrast, the system in the U.S. has collectively left about 40 million Americans with a student loan debt of $1.6 trillion.

"We live in a highly competitive global economy and, if our economy is to be strong, we need the best-educated workforce in the world. That will not happen if, every year, hundreds of thousands of bright young people cannot afford to go to college, and if millions more leave school deeply in debt," Sanders said on Sunday, according to Bloomberg.

Under the plan, the federal government would cover 67 percent of the cost, which equates to $47 billion dollars each year. The remaining 33 percent, or $23 billion dollars, would be provided by state governments, reports USA Today.

The bill also includes a measure to decrease interest rates on current student loans, cutting them almost in half from 4.32 percent to 2.32 percent. Plus, the bill gives current borrowers the opportunity to refinance their loans and take advantage of the lower 2.32 percent rate.

Another provision in the bill would expand work study programs.

"This legislation would expand the number of students and colleges that can offer part-time employment and participate in the federal work study program, and focus funding on schools that enroll high numbers of low-income students," it reads.

To pay for the plan, Sanders would adopt a tax on Wall Street, which includes a .5 percent speculation fee on investment houses, hedge funds and stock trades. A .1 percent fee would also be added on bonds, and a .005 percent fee will be charged on derivatives.