Bill to steady fees a positive first step

Monday, August 18, 1997

The California state Assembly made an excellent decision when it
passed the Higher Education Partnership Act. The state Senate,
which is currently reviewing the bill, should do the same.

Over the past several years, lawmakers have repeatedly cut from
the already-small state education fund, often forcing public
universities to make drastic mandatory student fee hikes. With the
approval of this bill, the lawmakers in the Assembly have reassured
us of their commitment to providing quality education to those who
want it. Now it’s up to the state Senators to show us they mean
business.

The bill, which would go into effect July 1, 1999, promises to
provide the California State University (CSU) and the University of
California (UC) systems with at least the amount of funds allocated
the previous year, with adjustments made according to changes in
per capita income. Fee increases may not exceed the percentage
increases in per capita income.

What does this mean to students? No drastic fee increases. While
this is a great thing, it may also create problems in emergencies,
which may only be provided for by student fee increases. The money
has to come from somewhere, and the measly adjusted-income fee
increases won’t cover those costs. The policy needs more
flexibility in dealing with emergency situations which may arise
later on.

Nevertheless, schools still win big with the bill because it
also promises a minimum level of funding to the UC and CSU systems.
This steady cash flow is a refreshing change because it indicates
that legislators want to provide adequate funding to higher
education. Education should be guaranteed a certain amount of funds
each year. In fact, legislators should go one step further and
guarantee money for education in the state constitution. Bills can
easily be repealed, but an amendment to the state constitution
would give the promise more permanence.

Another positive aspect of the bill is that any campus-based fee
hikes not in effect Jan. 1, 1997 are prohibited without being
approved by a student referendum. We are still subject to the UC
Regents’ increases, such as the 50 percent fee hikes in 1992, but
this bill relieves us of having to worry about any additional
campus-based fee hikes from the state.

But now that legislators are looking to sign this new agreement
into law, it tells us they are making a solid commitment to keep
fees steady, and students won’t see any more dramatic hikes.

The education act is a valiant effort by the state to work
toward making the Higher Education Master Plan a reality. This plan
was envisioned over 30 years ago to make higher education more
accessible to students by requiring low fees. Even though a ceiling
for fees isn’t a perfect answer, at least the schools should have
enough money to offset the need for costly fee increases.

The California schools have suffered enough budget cuts. After
years of taking from education’s share of the general fund, it’s
about time they commit to putting it back in. The Higher Education
Partnership Act reaffirms the importance of education, and it’s
great to see that the state lawmakers are making it a priority. The
policy still has some bugs that need to be worked out, but it’s
definitely a step in the right direction.