The Maryland State Teachers Association endorsed a proposal yesterday to raise the sales tax by a penny to help fund a landmark school aid package.

Citing recent polls that show a majority of the public in favor of raising the tax, the leaders of the teachers union said an increase from 5 cents per dollar to 6 cents is the fairest way to fund the plan devised by the Thornton commission and adopted by the General Assembly in 2002.

"We believe someone needs to step forward and make the statement [that] we cannot rely on the hope we can collect enough funds for public education from further cuts," said Patricia A. Foerster, president of the teachers association.

Foerster said the sales tax increase, proposed by some Democrats, would generate $1.4 billion over the next two years.

Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. (R), who will unveil his budget today, is expected to propose cutting $45 million from next year's Thornton funding. That has angered some lawmakers: Yesterday, the legislative black caucus held a news conference to demand that the governor fully fund the plan.

"That is our top priority," said Del. Obie Patterson (D-Prince George's). "We do not want it phased in. We do not want it delayed.

"We want it now -- nothing less."

Tuition Cap Bill

The president of the Maryland Senate and more than two dozen Senate Democrats introduced a plan yesterday to cap tuition increases at Maryland's public colleges and universities and force Republican Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. to increase state aid for higher education.

The bill's chief sponsor, Sen. Brian E. Frosh (D-Montgomery), said the proposal would provide a stable source of funds for the University System of Maryland while assuring "students and their families that tuition will be predictable and affordable."

Higher education has been hit hard over the past two years as Ehrlich and his predecessor, Parris N. Glendening (D), have struggled to balance the state budget in the face of stagnant tax revenue. The public university system has absorbed 20 percent of all spending reductions since 2002 even though it accounts for about 8 percent of the state budget, Frosh said.

Ehrlich has said there will be no further cuts or increases in the budget he plans to submit to the legislature today.

Frosh's bill would require Ehrlich to restore about $80 million cut since last January.

In future years, the governor would be required to increase state aid to higher education by at least 5 percent annually, and tuition increases would be capped at 4 percent a year.

Sacrificing Raises

The leaders of Maryland's public universities have decided to pass up the 2.5 percent raises they were scheduled to receive next year as a show of their concern about budget cuts throughout higher education.

The raises were to have come through a merit increase ordered by Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. (R) for all employees of state government. Campus leaders had earlier complained that they were required to find the money for the salary increases at a time when state funding was being cut or held to last year's levels.

Among the 75 officials who will turn down the raises are the presidents of the state university system's 13 campuses and their vice presidents, as well as system Chancellor William E. Kirwan and his vice chancellors.

System spokeswoman Ann Moultrie said the estimated $200,000 saved will be redirected to student financial aid "and other pressing institutional needs."