UC system does not expect tuition increase in near future
On Jan. 10, 2019, newly-elected California Gov. Gavin Newsom released his state budget proposal for the 2019-20 year. In the $209 billion budget, he included a funding increase for California public school systems — as long as tuition costs remain frozen at their current levels.
But first, what does this mean for the UC system? In his budget breakdown for higher education, he proposed to increase total funding to the University of California by $274.6 million, reflecting a 3 percent increase from the 2018-19 budget.
This raise comes with several expectations for the institution.
“These investments are provided with the expectation that tuition will remain flat, access will be increased, and time to degree will improve,” Newsom’s budget summary stated. “The significant investments proposed for the UC should begin an in-depth conversation between the Administration and the Regents regarding the short- and long-term goals and expectations of the state and the UC.”
Back in April of 2018, the Los Angeles Times reported that the UC Regents were holding off on voting for a tuition increase in the hopes that the state government would come through with increased funding.
It is still unclear if this 3 percent boost for the UC system will be enough to hold tuition steady for the next few years. Claire Doan, the director of media relations for the UC Office of the President, said the institution is fairly certain on how much tuition will cost for the coming school year.
“At this time, UC does not anticipate a tuition increase for the 2019-20 academic year,” Doan said via email. “Discussions about the university budget will continue in the coming months.”
Doan did not comment on what this funding might mean for the coming years.
The UC Davis Department of Financial Aid and Scholarships declined to comment on the matter, stating that this tuition discussion “involves policies and decisions that impact the UC system, not just UC Davis, therefore a response must also be cleared at the system-wide level.”
Written by: Claire Dodd — campus@theaggie.org
