Senate’s call for tuition freeze at state universities sets off some alarm bells

HARRISBURG — Students attending Pennsylvania’s 10 state universities have not seen a tuition hike in six years.

Now senators would like to see those tuitions remain frozen for another year.

Tucked deep in a 103-page budget-related bill that passed the Senate on a 29-18 near party-line vote Wednesday is a provision that would require colleges in the State System of Higher Education to hold tuition at $7,716 through the 2024-25 school year in order to receive state funding.

The system’s board already voted to freeze the rate for this year but does not set next year’s rate until next summer.

The bill also would grant the system’s university presidents the discretion to waive the higher out-of-state tuition rate for any students it enrolls who reside in one of Pennsylvania’s border states.

The legislation, which contains a multitude of other budget-related issues, goes to the House where it likely will encounter pushback from Democrats just as it did in the Senate. All but two of the Democratic senators opposed the bill.

The idea that the General Assembly would assume power to set tuition rates set off alarm bells for one Democratic senator who serves on the system’s board of governors, which has had sole authority to set tuition rates.

“The legislature has delegated the authority of the system of course to the chancellor and to the board of governors in making those decisions like tuition rates as well as what majors are offered,” said Sen. Judith Schwank, D-Berks County. “Are we going to begin to direct the system as to how it’s managed? I don’t think that’s a good trajectory for us.”

In explaining the rationale behind the freeze, Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman, R-Indiana County, told fellow senators it’s a matter of keeping tuition within reach of more students and trying to reverse enrollment decline.

“Why on earth would we not want to vote to make sure that the students that attend our state-owned universities are not saddled with a tuition increase next year?” Mr. Pittman said. “All families who attend our State System schools deserve assurance that tuition will not go up in the 2024-25 school year.”

He said given the system’s enrollment trend decline from 119,500 in 2010-11 to last year’s 84,500 students, “I can assure you one way that we won’t reverse that decline is by increasing tuition. … So let’s make it easier on our families to know that if they want to give their children an opportunity to succeed in a state-owned institution that they will not pay more next year.”

State System spokesman Kevin Hensil responded to the Senate’s action, saying, “We look forward to continue working with the General Assembly and governor to help our universities provide a high-quality education at the lowest possible cost.”

Ms. Schwank said the proposed freeze caught her and others in her caucus by surprise. She said she is unaware of any increased funding accompanying the proposal to make freezing tuition possible for another year, while keeping up with rising operational costs.

Moreover, she said the system’s board has demonstrated the need to keep its tuition affordable for the low- and middle-income families it was created to serve.

“We get it. It’s very clear to us we do have to be the best most affordable option for Pennsylvania students who want a higher education,” she said. “But in order to continue to do this, we have to receive the funding from the commonwealth.”

Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Scott Martin, R-Lancaster County, who prior to this year was a member of the system’s board and served as Senate Education Committee chairman, said he knows tuition affordability has been at the forefront for the system. He also noted the General Assembly has stepped up its investment to help in recent years and doesn’t see that commitment wavering.

He acknowledged that senators had no conversation with system officials about the freeze although he added, “it certainly has been implied over time in our concerns with them as they come to us and want to talk about how much money they want. I don’t think it’s a shock that this is what we believe and really want to put forth.”

He said keeping the tuition rates steady is key to gaining senators’ support to boost investment, including last year’s historic single-year increase of $75 million and the $125 million in one-time American Rescue Plan Act funding to support the system’s redesign the year before.

This year’s enacted budget provides a $33 million increase in state funding for a total of $585.6 million to support the system’s $1.9 billion operating budget.

He also said the freeze, along with granting the discretion to waive the higher tuition out-of-staters typically pay, are tied to a desire to attract more young people to Pennsylvania, attend its schools and perhaps settle here.

“Now is the time where we really need to re-examine how we can be a magnet to get more people to come to Pennsylvania given our demographic challenges, and hopefully stay here,” Mr. Martin said. “We can’t necessarily be treating them as you’re outsiders so we’re going to charge you more.”

What’s more, Mr. Martin said attaching strings to state appropriations is nothing new. He pointed out the General Assembly specified categories for how the $125 million in American Rescue Plan dollars could be used. Other state-funded entities have had to deal with restrictions on how they use their state funding, he said.

“Sometimes we say to be absolutely clear this is the direction we’re going to go,” Mr. Martin said.

Another part of that same bill affecting a State System school provides relief to debt-ridden Pennsylvania Western University, which opened last year as a consolidated university combining California, Clarion and Edinboro universities. The state would appropriate $65.4 million to cover 30% of PennWest’s annual debt obligations, freeing up money for educational programs.

Mr. Martin justified that appropriation, saying because the commonwealth owns the system universities it ultimately would be responsible for covering that debt if that university should close.

“It’s kind of protecting our backside,” he said.

Other universities that are part of the State System include Cheyney, East Stroudsburg, Indiana, Kutztown, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock and West Chester as well as Commonwealth University, comprising Bloomsburg, Lock Haven and Mansfield campuses.