Spring Break
No fee increase for CSU
Jamie Gonzales
The State Hornet
To avoid any increase in student fees, the $4.5 billion budget is proposing $65.2 million from the state General Fund, according to the CSU website. If the budget is approved without any modifications by the state, the CSU system will continue to have the lowest undergraduate fees among California's 15 higher-education public institutions.
An average full-time student at Sac State would continue to pay about $3,300 a year, according to the Sacramento State Outreach, Admissions and Records website. In comparison, an average full-time student at UC Davis would pay about $8,300 in one year, according to Davis? website.
The CSU system is currently working with the governor's office to ensure that the fees will not increase this next year, said Paul Browning, media relations specialist for the chancellor's office.
"We all agree that college affordability is critical to ensure a well-prepared workforce for the future of California," said Roberta Achtenberg, the trustees' chairperson.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is committed to not having students "endure fees," said Sabrina Lockhart, the deputy press secretary for the governor's office.
Fees are not the only issue addressed in the CSU budget.
The budget also addressed enrollment. To provide for an additional 11,000 students, the budget will provide $64.2 million, Browning said. The CSU will also get $25.2 million in proceeds from fees of the 2.5 percent enrollment growth.
Campus President Alexander Gonzalez said the decrease of enrollment from incoming freshmen and transfer students can partially be blamed on the aggressiveness of the Los Rios Community College system.
The budget also proposes $2.5 million for an additional 200 nursing students at the masters level, Browning said.
The proposed budget also gives $83 million for a 3 percent compensation pool for employees and $47 million to "fund the second year of the five-year plan to close employee salary gaps," according to the website.
"The proposed budget requests full funding under the Compact for Higher Education to support an overwhelming demand for enrollment, address CSU employee salaries and meet ever increasing health benefits and energy costs," Chancellor Charles B. Reed said.
The Compact was created in 2005 as an agreement between Gov. Schwarzenegger and the University of California and CSU systems. The state will provide funding for "base budget allocations, enrollment, student fees" and other programs until 2011, as long as the two university systems agree to focus their resources to concentrate on "long-term accountability goals for enrollment, student fees, financial aid and program quality," according to the UC website.
The CSU budget proposal will be sent to the Senate and Assembly hearing committees in January, Browning said, while the governor's budget proposal will also be presented to the legislature. Both budgets will also be presented to the Legislative Analyst's Office.
After revisions by the Legislature, the Senate and Assembly must approve both budgets by June. If approved, the governor will either reject or approve the revised budget around July 1.
Gonzalez said he hopes that the governor will approve the proposal.
"(The proposal) is a good budget," Browning said. "We think it will pass."
Jamie Gonzales can be reached at news@statehornet.com