Guaranteed tuition rates

Students at public colleges and universities would be protected from tuition increases while they finish their degrees, under a proposal being considered by a House division.

Under HF1374, undergraduates enrolled in the University of Minnesota and the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system would be guaranteed a fixed rate of tuition for up to four years. The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Mark Buesgens (R-Jordan), said the change would give families a degree of certainty as they try to plan their finances.

“It does provide a tool where a prospective college student and their families can make long-term comparisons in the cost of their college education,” Buesgens said.

He added that the four-year time limit (two years for associate degrees) on the fixed rate would provide a “built-in incentive” for students to finish their education on time.

There may be a catch, however: fixed tuition rates would likely mean higher tuition rates, because schools would charge more at the outset to compensate for their inability to raise tuition.

“This bill will not save students or families money,” said Peter Zetterberg, a senior analyst for undergraduate education at the University of Minnesota. “If anything, a system like this … will probably make tuition a little higher than might otherwise be the case.”

According to Zetterberg, the university had an optional fixed-rate tuition program from 1995 to 2005. It even offered to pay students back the difference if they ended up paying more than those who weren’t in the fixed-rate program. Despite this, Zetterberg said the program was discontinued because of “surprisingly little interest.”

The House Higher Education and Workforce Development Finance and Policy Division laid the bill over March 19 for possible inclusion in its omnibus finance bill. There is no Senate companion.