Tuition Increase Possible for 2013

    The UC and CSU governing boards met earlier this month to discuss methods of maximizing revenue for the UC system to avoid a possible six percent increase in tuition for the 2013-14 school year.

    On Nov. 14, the UC Board of Regents voted on a budget strategy to increase state funding by over $267 million. If state funding is increased, the board hopes that there would be a boost in enrollment and maintenance of other programs. The funding request is $417 million more than the previous year, which totaled about $558 million.

    “Although Proposition 30 passed, there was no money designated specifically for the UCs,” UC Media Specialist Dianne Klein said. “There would’ve been an immediate cut of $357 million, but since that’s off the table, we have some breathing room.”

    The proposed budget plan seeks every method in maintaining the academic quality of the UC system to avoid a last resort to increase student tuition. If there is no increase in state funding, the board would increase efforts to receive private funds and increase efficiency. Gov. Jerry Brown and Lt. Gov. Gavin Newson said on Nov. 14 that this possibility is likely.

    Striving to improve efficiency throughout the UC system, a new campaign — the Working Smarter Initiative — is working to redirect $500 million from administrative costs to the academic effort within five years through various programs. Some include financial and attendance systems, energy and climate solutions, library efficiency strategies, data warehousing, asset managing and more. The initiative began in March 2010 and has currently saved about $290 million.

    The board is at the beginning of the process of creating a budget plan for the upcoming fiscal year. It must be presented to the state, where the governor would take cumulative budgets into consideration and release a statement in January. The statement would then be sent to the legislature; the final budget will be released on June 15.

    Although the proposed budget plan does not explicitly mention a student tuition increase, there is still a possibility even if state funding increases. Klein said there must be good fiscal planning to avoid higher student fees. The board has also been cutting back on staff raises, and Gov. Jerry Brown is encouraging an increase in online classes. He hopes that industry leaders, such as the Udacity website that provides free online courses, could aid the UC system in becoming more involved in a digital setting.

    “We need to look for funds under every rock,” Klein said. “We need to save money, increase efficiency, and restructure the university to make it work as much as possible without sacrificing academic quality; raising student tuition is the last resort.”

    UC spokesperson Brooke Converse said that until Brown releases a plan in January, there is no way to see what may happen. The proposed budget plan includes various ideas and possibilities that the board is considering.

    “We’re just putting everything on the table for consideration,” Converse said.

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