SAN FRANCISCO – California college students are bracing for higher tuition bills and fewer courses and campus services under a new state budget that once again slashes spending on higher education.
The budget signed last Thursday by Gov. Jerry Brown inflicts the latest blow to California’s renowned higher education system, which has helped make the state an economic powerhouse and served as a model for other states and countries.
Over the past three years, California’s public colleges and universities have seen deep cuts in state funding that have dramatically raised the cost of attendance, forced campuses to turn away qualified students and eroded the quality of classroom instruction.
Under the newly approved state budget, the 10-campus University of California and 23-campus California State University will each lose at least $650 million in state funding, a cut of more than 20 percent. The two systems could each face another $100 million cut if the state takes in less revenue than expected.
The 112-campus community college system will lose $400 million in state funding and fees will increase from $26 to $36 per unit. The system could lose another $72 million and raise fees to $46 per unit if revenue projections fall short.
UC officials said Friday they will recommend that the Board of Regents consider raising undergraduate tuition by an additional 9.6 percent to offset the deeper-than-expected funding cut. Tuition is already set to rise 8 percent this fall to about $12,000, about three times what students paid a decade ago.
In an interview with The Associated Press, UC President Mark Yudof said higher tuition will cause hardship for many students, but he sees little choice when the university faces a $1 billion budget shortfall driven by rising costs and shrinking public support.
