UC tuition hike proposal gets a tepid response and many questions from regents

University of California regents — confronted with an uncertain financial outlook amid Trump administration cuts, state budget tightening and inflation — had a tepid response and many questions Thursday as they began debate on a proposal to increase tuition and set aside less of that revenue for financial aid.

Several expressed strong opposition, others had concerns about how a tuition hike would help lower- and middle-income students — and many requested more information before their next discussion. Student leaders who spoke during the public comment portion of the meeting were a unanimous “no.”

With the university’s existing tuition policy set to expire in about a year, regents are slated to decide what to do in mid-November. But during the first public discussion of the issue, several regents expressed concern over changing the existing tuition model — while also acknowledging the need to collect more money to keep campuses afloat.

“My problem is one of optics. ... If it’s not broken, why are we trying to fix it?” said Regent Rich Leib during the meeting at UCLA.

Where tuition stands now

The issue at hand is devising a policy that assures “tuition stability” for enrolling students — essentially shielding them from ongoing increases during their college years — while generating enough money during financially unstable times.

In the summer of 2021 — after years of debate, protest and delay — UC raised tuition and introduced a program to lock in rates for undergraduates tied to the year they first enrolled.

Today, students from California who entered in the fall of 2022 — the upcoming graduating class — pay the same annual tuition of $13,104 they did on their first day of class. But those who started in the years after that pay a higher amount tied to inflation and increasing costs, a price tag that stays fixed for the duration of their studies, up to six years.

UC leaders credit the program — which also puts 45% of tuition revenue toward financial aid — with bringing budget predictability to families, helping campuses maintain educational standards and making a UC education more affordable for many low-income students by raising more money for aid.

Each year, tuition is allowed to increase up to 5%. For undergraduates entering in the fall, tuition will be $14,934 for California residents and $50,328 for nonresidents, including out-of-state and international students.

Other college costs, such as housing, food, course materials, supplies, equipment, health insurance, transportation and personal spending can vary by campus. At UCLA, students living in university housing and enrolling this fall can expect to pay an additional $28,203 in such fees, for a total of $43,137 for California residents before financial aid.

What is next?

As UC’s five-year “tuition stability plan” approaches its expiration after the fall of 2026, UC regents must decide whether to drop it, renew it or renew it with modifications.

On Thursday, UC Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President Nathan Brostrom presented the board with three possible changes.

They included: increasing the annual tuition increase cap from 5% to 7%, reducing the amount of fees put toward financial aid to 35%, and introducing an additional annual step increase on top of the existing inflation-based ones. The last proposed increase would be tied to California’s consumer price index.

Brostrom said the changes would continue the program’s goals of a “sustainable budget plan for the university” as well as providing “stability to students, to their families and campuses.”

A 19-page report that his team presented to regents said growing California student enrollment, coupled with “substantial” increases to core operation costs, have outpaced state budget and tuition revenue — all amid high inflation. In addition, the university system is facing sustained strain from federal grant funding cuts — hundreds of millions of dollars — and a systemwide hiring freeze that was announced in March.

The report cited the needs for raising tuition:

Instructional spending per student has decreased when compared with levels 20 years ago. The student-to-faculty ratio has “continued to worsen.” Staff support for students and faculty has not kept up with growing enrollment and salaries for tenure-track faculty lag behind university goals. In addition, campuses are grappling with backlogs of deferred maintenance.

How regents responded

Several regents did not appear convinced — at least for now — to make any changes.

Regent Michael Cohen hailed the current tuition plan and said cutting the percentage of tuition revenue that goes toward financial aid worried him. “I’m willing to take the side of affordability,” he said.

Regent Mark Robinson said he “wholeheartedly” favored renewing the stability plan approach. But a higher 7% cap “feels a little bit like a potential shock.”

Regent and Vice Chair Maria Anguiano said she supported “modest tuition increases” but that 7% “no longer feels modest.”

Regent and Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis agreed. “I would just like to suggest taking this off the table,” she said of the potential new cap.

Regent Jay Sures said he disagreed, citing the “existential threat” the university faces amid state and federal cuts and concerns over UC health operations revenue after cuts to Medicaid in the federal budget that Congress recently passed.

“What concerns me is what would happen if you did have a cap and our shortfall was such that we were in that disaster situation?” Sures said.

He pointed out that most UC students receive financial aid and that other selective public universities, such as the University of Virginia, have significantly higher in-state tuition rates.

The view from student leaders

Student government leaders also were opposed to a new cap.

Speaking during a public comment session Thursday, outgoing UC Student Assn. President Aditi Hariharan urged regents to cancel the tuition lock-in altogether.

“These forever tuition hikes continuously increase the tuition for future classes of students,” said Hariharan, a UC Davis student. She added that if the program continues, caps and the share of tuition used for financial aid should remain the same because of fears over “unpredictable changes in financial aid policy ... given all of the recent federal changes.”

Speaking during a public comment session Wednesday, UC Santa Barbara student Lucia Hermoso said the current model is “unfair” because “students are in the same classrooms but paying different prices.”

“This model puts more financial burden on students, rather than solving the deeper issue of underfunding in public higher education,” said Hermoso, who works as a legislative aide to the systemwide UC Student Assn.

Briana Trujillo, the vice president for external affairs in the UC Riverside student government, also spoke Wednesday.

“These tuition hikes don’t come back with better services, better teaching, or better facilities. Just higher costs,” she said.

The report under review calculated how much families with different income levels would pay once financial aid is factored in under the proposed increases.

Overall, if the plan is renewed with a 7% maximum yearly increase for new cohorts and a 35% return to financial aid, the projected total tab for attendance in 2029-30 academic year would be $47,400 — consisting of $16,600 in tuition costs and $30,800 in nontuition costs for California residents.

Tuition for in-state residents would be $1,300 lower if the plan was scrapped and costs remained flat at fall 2025 levels.

But, according to UC calculations, when financial aid is factored in — even with tuition increases and less money sent toward aid — the result would be lower net costs for most students except those from the highest income levels, such as families making above $180,000 annually.

Financial aid lowers out-of-pocket costs for many students. At UCLA, 63% of undergraduates receive financial aid and 71% graduate with no debt. In addition, under UC-wide rules, California students who qualify for financial aid and come from families earning less than $80,000 a year end up paying no tuition.