House adopts appropriations conference report that includes tuition-surcharge authority for Regents

The Utah House on Feb. 27 adopted the conference committee report on House Bill 1, the appropriations act, after a brief debate over new language that would allow the State Board of Regents to add a tuition surcharge for the 2002 academic year.

Representative Jeff Alexander moved to adopt the report, explaining the conference language permits the Board of Regents to add a tuition surcharge “not greater than 4% of the current year tuition” at affected institutions and “not greater than 7% of the current year tuition at Utah Valley State College,” with surcharges to be tied to demonstrated critical institutional needs and reported to the higher education appropriation subcommittee.

Representative King supported the bill’s intent to give universities flexibility to retain faculty and fund new programs but cautioned the change leaves community colleges without a similar tool: “What the current language does not do … is provide a tool for the community college to treat those same exact needs,” he said, urging future attention to equity for two-year institutions. Representative Buckmeyer said the measure effectively amounts to taxing students after a 4% tuition increase already enacted earlier in the year and said she could not support the surtax framing.

Alexander said surcharges would be implemented under Board of Regents direction and would return to the higher education appropriation subcommittee annually so committees could review requests. The motion to adopt the conference committee report passed and the House agreed to transmit the bill for further handling per the enrollment process.

The House also recorded other votes during the same series of transmittals and read-ins; clerks proceeded with enrollment and referral for signature.