California universities in battle over fees hike

Under intense pressure not to raise tuition for the second consecutive year, California's public university systems have delayed votes to increase student fees and turned their attention back to the Capitol to lobby the state for more money, writes Alexei Koseff in The Sacramento Bee.

Hundreds of California State University students and faculty, joined by Chancellor Timothy White, rallied in Sacramento last week, calling on Governor Jerry Brown and lawmakers to cover the cost of an anticipated 4% tuition hike in the forthcoming state budget. University of California students, facing a possible fee increase of nearly 3% next year, visited the Capitol the previous week. Legislative leaders are supportive of their efforts.

But Brown has made it clear he is not interested in either raising fees or giving the University of California and California State University more than the 3% boost to their state funding, roughly US$92 million each, that he proposed in January. At a press conference, he said the universities would simply have to lower their cost structures and “live within their means”.
Full report on The Sacramento Bee site