Nations an "if" on tuition proposal

OKLAHOMA CITY — A bill which would allow college students to “lock in” their tuition rate at state colleges and universities is getting a lukewarm response from a Norman area lawmaker.

State Rep. Bill Nations said he is supportive of House Bill 2103’s concept of “locking in” tuition prices, but there’s an “if.”

And, that “if,” the Norman Democrat said, is a pretty big one.

“I’m all for it, if … if the Legislature will do what they need to do to fund higher education.”

That means, he said, “all those brave legislators who want to do the politically convenient thing of locking tuition will have to find the courage to fund higher education from the general revenue fund.”

Under House Bill 2103, the state would create a locked-in tuition rate for in-state college students. Beginning in the 2008-2009 school year, the measure would require all public higher education institutions in Oklahoma to offer in-state students the option to participate in a guaranteed tuition rate plan.

The plan would lock in tuition rates accessed the student’s freshman year for four continuous years.

However, the bill would still allow the state’s colleges and universities to raise tuition and fees no higher than the regional average.

“This is a win-win proposal,” the bill’s author, state Rep. Lee Denney said. Denney, a Cushing Republican, said the measure would keep more students in state.

“This will help to slow our state’s brain drain, because we’ll encourage more Oklahoma students to stay in our state to get their college degree,” he said. “And we’ll help families plan ahead for the financial impact of college expenses.”

Nations disagreed, saying that locking in tuition costs won’t make that much difference.

“Oklahoma is already the cheapest place they (students) can go to school,” he said. “Where are they going to find it any cheaper?”

Oklahoma students don’t go to out-of-state colleges and universities because of cost. “If they are going out-of-state, it’s for other reasons,” he said.

And while Nations said the state’s colleges and universities “need to be congratulated” for having done a better job than the rest of the nation at controlling costs, the “bigger issue” is adequate state funding.

“You can’t operate any activity — prisons, CareerTech, common education, public safety, transportation — with inadequate funding. And you can’t operate our higher ed system with inadequate funding. The reason tuition increases in America are out of control is state legislatures will not come to the table with adequate funding from their general revenue funds.”

The problem is not just an Oklahoma issue, “but a United States of America problem.”

With a vote of 26 to 20, HB 2103 squeaked through the state Senate and now returns of the House for consideration.

“No one likes tuition and fee increases,” Nations said. “But higher ed only has two funding sources — tuition and fees and state appropriations. This isn’t rocket science, it’s not brain surgery. My biggest concern is when the funding question comes before the Legislature — I’m afraid they’ll lose their courage.”