A new higher education compact provides a one-year budget fix and renewed commitment to access and stable fees beginning in 2005-2006. That leaves legislators some big holes to fill in the agreement between Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the University of California and California State University.

Some things in the compact work. Let's start with them.

The agreement forges reasonable compromise on access in these hard budget times. For the 2004-2005 year, UC/CSU accept Schwarzenegger's position that we cannot fund all the access we would like. The state would turn away 5,000 qualified students at UC and 13,000 at CSU, redirect 3,200 UC and 3,800 CSU students to the state's community colleges for two years and then guarantee access to UC/CSU for the last two years of college. The fear has been that this one-year proposal would become the de facto policy of the future.

The agreement announced on Tuesday makes it clear that beginning in 2005-2006, the state will return to the 1960 Master Plan for Higher Education. That plan includes a commitment to provide space for the top one-eighth of graduating high school seniors in the UC system and for the top one-third in the CSU system. The state will fund growing college-age populations of 2.5 percent a year - 5,000 students a year at UC and 8,000 students a year at CSU.

There's good news on fees, too. Both parties have agreed to phase in a system of "gradual, moderate and predictable" fee increases so students and their families can better plan for college expenses.

Finally, the agreement includes a viable solution to break the "boom and bust" cycle of fee increases. In fall 2003, fees at UC were $5,250 (27 percent of total cost) and fees at CSU were $2,649 (21 percent of total cost). Under the compromise, these will increase an average of 10 percent a year over the next three years - 14 percent for 2004-2005, 8 percent for 2005-2006 and 8 percent for 2006-2007. After that, Schwarzenegger's proposal would apply: Tie fee increases to per capita personal income, with maximum increases of 10 percent in difficult budget times.

Schwarzenegger backed off what would have been a disastrous policy of increasing fees while dramatically reducing financial aid. Traditionally, when UC/CSU have increased fees, they've reserved one-third of the increase for financial aid so that lower-and moderate-income students won't be squeezed out. Schwarzenegger had proposed to reduce this earmark from 33 percent to 20 percent. The compromise is that "no less than 20 percent and no more than 33 percent of revenue generated from student fee increases is to be used to provide aid to needy students." OK, but the agreement is silent on Cal Grants, where Schwarzenegger is proposing significant changes. Legislators will have to make sure that financial aid increases enough to cover fee increases for lower-and moderate-income students.

The agreement also fudges on UC/CSU outreach programs to increase college-going rates among students whose families have no history of higher education and who live in communities where college attendance has been below average. Schwarzenegger proposed eliminating funding for these programs - $33.3 million for UC and $52 million for CSU. Now UC/CSU agree to use non-state funding for these programs - no less than $12 million at UC and $45 million at CSU. Legislators should revisit this part of the agreement to ensure that these important programs not only survive, but also have enough resources to be effective.

The agreement between Schwarzenegger and UC/CSU should be seen as a starting point for budget discussions, not as a new understanding of the state's commitment to higher education. For the long run, the Master Plan is still the best expression of that commitment.