Monday, 8/4/97 California college students under threat of
sudden $330 fee hike TUITION: Decision to use tax windfall has
budget committee reconsidering
By Frances Lee Daily Bruin Senior Staff Seven months ago,
students applauded Gov. Pete Wilson’s commitment to keep fees in
the state school system at their current level. Last Wednesday, in
a move that angered and shocked students in the UC and CSU systems,
the governor paid a $1.36 billion settlement to the state pension
fund – a move that could add $330 to next year’s fees. The payment
erased the $2 billion tax revenue windfall the state budget
received earlier this year, and sent legislators scrambling back to
rewrite the budget, already a month late. A joint Senate-Assembly
conference committee has begun the task of reducing discretionary
spending from the budget. Funding for higher education could be one
of those cuts. Ron Low, a spokesman for the governor, stressed that
nothing has been decided yet. "Everything is back on the table,"
Low said. "(It’s) the conference committee’s job to trim $2 billion
from the budget." Wilson’s decision to repay the Public Employees
Retirement System (PERS) settlement in one lump sum was a political
"neutron bomb" which he dropped on Democrats, who would not back
his tax cut plan. Ironically, the Democrats’ primary reason for
rejecting the governor’s tax plan was that they feared it would cut
into public education spending. In January, Wilson earmarked $37
million to buy out the UC system’s 10 percent fee hike, which would
have hit students with a $330 increase this year. That was before
the "neutron bomb" exploded – before $2 billion had to be cut from
the budget. The fate of higher education funding now lies in the
hands of budget writers. "One of the things we’re concerned about
is the timing of the announcement," said Tony Teresi, a member of
the California State Students Association, which represents the
337,000 students in the CSU system. As CSU and UC students prepare
to return to school in less than six weeks – with financial aid
packages that were awarded before the possibility of a fee hike –
Teresi expressed concern that "the timing will dramatically effect
students’ personal budgets. It’s not proper (for the governor) to
pay for a lawsuit with financial aid money." Lt. Gov. Gray Davis
blasted Wilson for using such tactics and jeopardizing programs,
calling him "petulant" and likening him to a "kid in a sandbox" for
playing political hardball. "There’s no need to be punitive when
you’re the governor," Davis said. "Nobody anticipated the governor
paying it off all at once … and students will have to bear the
burden (if higher education funding is cut). "I’m outraged that the
governor is proposing to raise fees in a year we have a $2 billion
surplus," Davis added. "Students are going back in less than six
weeks," he added, "and there’s not enough time to get another
part-time job or scrape up more money to pay for this likely fee
increase." Fiona Moore, a fourth-year student at UC Davis, agreed.
Moore transferred from a community college last fall and is
entering the home stretch before graduation. She was excited about
the summer job she got two weeks ago, thinking that she would be
better off financially this year. "I was planning (to be ahead)
since Gov. Wilson had been saying for six months that he’d be
buying out the fee increase," Moore said. "All of a sudden, he’s
saying that’s not true, and I would like to know how he’s expecting
us to make up the difference." Moore is far from being the only UC
student with financial difficulties. Almost 53 percent of students
in the UC system receive some form of financial aid, and an
unexpected increase in fees could hurt an estimated 67,000
students. "If the governor cuts (the buy-out), we have a major
budget problem," said Assistant Vice-Chancellor Glyn Davies. "As
reluctant as everybody would be, (a fee increase) would have to be
considered." Currently, the governor’s cuts are just proposals, and
nothing has been approved. Whether or not Wilson remains committed
to funding the buy-out, Assistant Vice-Chancellor Thomas Lifka
noted that fees have not increased in three years. "We’re not going
to go forever without a fee increase, with the cost of education
going up," Lifka said. "It’s good the state supports higher
education, but unrealistic to think it’s going to go on forever."
Lifka also noted that the state budget was still in the
negotiations process, and that nothing has been signed. However, if
a fee increase does go through, both Lifka and Davies said that
financial aid packages will be re-evaluated. From an administrative
standpoint, they added, it would be difficult to implement the
increase in the fall quarter. Rather, if a fee increase did go
through, it would most likely be spread out over the winter and
spring quarters. Previous Daily Bruin Story: Millenium programs
fight for access to education Related Link: Learning in
California-Financial Aid