Statewide budget cuts are prompting Louisiana legislators to propose possible solutions to keep the state afloat — even constitutional amendments.
Louisiana state Rep. Franklin Foil, R-Baton Rouge, is proposing an amendment to give large public universities such as LSU and UL-Lafayette more leverage with their tuition.
Louisiana is currently the only state where raising tuition by more than 10 percent requires a two-thirds vote of approval from the state legislature.
Foil’s amendment would give University administration the power to change tuition prices without government consent.
In a statement on March 9, Foil said the amendment’s goal is “to give our colleges more control and stability over their budgets.”
Higher education leaders pushed for tuition autonomy for several years, and the Louisiana Board of Regents outlined it as one of its top priorities in its 2015 legislative agenda in February.
Though legislators and the Board of Regents aim to change the way tuition is set, Louisiana voters put this amendment in the books.
Public university tuition is regulated under an amendment passed in 1995.
If Foil’s new bill receives the two-thirds vote from the state legislature, it would then go on a ballot for Louisiana voters.
The Daily Reveille previously reported that Louisiana Higher Education Commissioner Joseph Rallo said he doesn’t think the bill will ultimately go through.
“I think it’s highly unlikely any higher education institution would raise its prices anyway because of how many students that would drive away,” Rallo said.
He said if a university increases its tuition, all TOPS eligible students will still be fully funded by the scholarship, which comes out of the General Fund for other programs and would cause deficits in other areas.
“It seems like a good idea in theory,” Rallo said. “But in reality, these institutions need those restrictions.”
Biology freshman Lauren Luckett said she doesn’t think tuition autonomy is a good idea.
“I really don’t think it’d be good for the school, the state or the students,” Luckett said. “I don’t want to have to pay more for my education because of statewide issues.”
Mass communication freshman Caitlin Gordon said she’d likely have to transfer schools if the University raised tuition.
“It’s already so much for me,” Gordon said. “I’d have to start looking other places.”
Gordon, a Texas native, said she thinks many out-of-state students would have to leave the University because tuition for a lot of these students is already high.
“I don’t think LSU would raise tuition even if the bill was passed because they’d lose so many students from other states, and that’s probably where a lot of their money comes from,” Gordon said.
University Faculty Senate President Kevin Cope said he has split views on tuition autonomy.
“I think it could go both ways, and it has pros and cons,” Cope said. “On one hand, you have a lot more money coming in for the schools, and that’s how you’ll see programs and courses not get cut. But on the other hand, more money would be needed for TOPS, and students who aren’t TOPS eligible would have an even harder time getting an education.”
University Executive Director of Policy and External Affairs Jason Droddy said he doesn’t believe tuition autonomy means a drastic increase in tuition, especially considering the tuition and fees preceding the 1995 bill placing restrictions on public universities.
“You have to remember that the Board of Supervisors had the ability to assess tuition from its creation all the way until that 1995 bill,” Droddy said. “I don’t think I ever heard one person complain about tuition prices from those times.”
He said if Franklin’s amendment gets through the state legislature and falls into the hands of Louisiana residents, voters need to be aware of the means necessary to provide high quality education.
“I think that the voters would have to understand that there is a certain quality of education we would like to provide, and the means necessary to provide that either fall into state appropriation of funds or tuition and fees,” Droddy said.