Copley News Service

SACRAMENTO – Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has enlisted a Democrat and retired schoolteacher to help carry out out his plan to limit college tuition increases.

The legislation aims to end a decade-long cycle of wild swings in fee increases passed on to students attending a California State University or University of California campus. The measure, SB 1535, does not address community colleges.

"All Californians would prefer for college tuition to drop each year. But, short of that, the least we can do for students and parents alike is rein in the erratic nature of college fees," said Sen. Betty Karnette, D-Long Beach, who is carrying the legislation for the governor.

The measure likely would tie tuition hikes to a formula based on personal income growth – currently running about 2.5 percent annually. Increases would be capped at 10 percent per year.

"We must end the boom-and-bust cycle of widely fluctuating fees with a predictable, capped fee policy for college students and their parents. And we must limit fee increases to no more than 10 percent a year," Schwarzenegger said in laying out his agenda in January.

However, Schwarzenegger narrowly avoids busting his own proposed limit in his 2004-2005 budget.

In the CSU system, resident undergraduates would pay $2,251 – a 9 percent increase over this year's $2,046 rate.

In the UC system, undergraduates would be charged $5,482 a year, up 10 percent from $4,984.

Graduate students would be socked with a 40 percent hike – raising annual tuition to $7,307 from the current $5,219.

Those attending professional schools, such as future doctors and lawyers, could see their tuition climb 25 percent. Fees vary by profession and school, but UC estimates the increase could reach $5,000 annually.

Over the past decade, fees have dropped, stood still or jumped depending on the state of the economy.

For example, a student who entered CSU as a freshman in 1994 and graduated four years later never saw an increase in the $1,584 tuition.

A freshman entering in 1998 would have been even better off financially. The tab was $1,506 the first year, but it dropped to $1,428 the following three years through spring 2002.

In contrast, a CSU freshman who enrolled in the early 1990s was hammered with steadily increasing costs passed on by lawmakers coping with a budget crunch. In 1990-1991, the base fee was $708. It didn't stop climbing until it reached $1,584 in 1994-95.

In UC, the average resident undergraduate paid $1,624 in 1990-91. After some increases, students caught a reprieve when tuition leveled off at $3,799 from fall 1994 through fall 1998. Tuition then fell, leveling off at $3,429 through spring 2002.

Officials with both systems have said there is merit in avoiding wildly fluctuating fees, but they are nervous about a blanket policy.

"The CSU system would like to achieve the same results, but have the freedom to set the fees in a different way," said Clara Potes-Fellow, a spokeswoman.

Key lawmakers have tentatively embraced a no-surprises goal, but have yet to endorse a specific policy. One thing they appear to agree on: no automatic increases.

"These swings of either nothing or 40 percent are just not fair to the students or parents," said Sen. Bruce McPherson of Santa Cruz, a Republican leader on education issues. "It has to be reasonable and predictable."

Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, D-Los Angeles, however, said he is anxious to go through the governor's student fee proposal when budget talks intensify in May.

"We're going to have to revisit that issue very seriously," Nunez said. "We have to sit down with the governor and hash out an agreement that doesn't fall negatively on the backs of students."

Sen. Dede Alpert, D-San Diego, said the Legislature erred in not implementing increases "gradually and consistently" that could have saved parents and students from sticker shock.