A Tough Blow, but UC Had to Raise Fees

When times are hard, all must share the burden. That is certainly the case on University of California campuses. Faced with Gov. Wilson’s proposed austerity budget, the Board of Regents has boosted undergraduate fees by 40%, the largest single increase in the history of the system.

By their actions, the regents acknowledged that given the anticipated $10-billion deficit faced by the state--and in the absence of new and higher levels of taxation--those who depend on government to pay the bills must decide their priorities and prepare to make sacrifices.

Given the dismal fiscal realities and the deepening recession, the regents were well aware that Sacramento would not adequately fund the system. Gov. Wilson had proposed a 20% boost in tuition to offset proposed cuts by the state. Facing a shortfall of $295 million, the regents approved an even bigger hike that will translate to an additional $650 per in-state student.

The higher fee can be justified by the grim fiscal picture and the overall increase in university costs. But the suddenness and size will hurt students and families that have carefully planned how to finance a college education. An incremental raise would have allowed more time to absorb the increase, but the dire fiscal situation did not allow that luxury.

Sure to suffer are UC students from middle-class and more modest backgrounds who do not qualify for full financial aid. They have every right to ask if state grants will keep pace with the increase. Another loan--on top of the huge loans already needed to cover fees and living expenses of more than $10,000 a year on some campuses--must not become the most common answer to the new fee.

Needy students can expect extra financial aid to cover the increase, according to UC officials. But if times get even worse, will the definition of needy just become more constricted?

Under the regents’ plan, the system’s 166,500 students will not suffer alone. The regents also decided to cut non-teaching staff by 1,000 jobs, curb enrollment, postpone faculty merit raises, reduce purchases of instructional equipment, delay building repairs and transfer remedial English and math classes to the already overburdened community colleges. In addition, all UC professors--including those with tenure--must teach more classes. Everyone, to reiterate, must share the pain.

California can boast of providing excellent public education at a fraction of the real cost. State subsidies--and political will--have kept tuition artificially low. The increased fee will remain a bargain compared to the tuition charged by private colleges and even public schools in other states. That comparison provides little solace, however, to the students and parents who must unexpectedly shoulder more of the burden.