Should Universities That Exceed the State Tuition Cap Face Harsher Penalties?

Lawmakers sitting on a pair of higher education committees are debating what to do moving forward when universities exceed a state imposed cap on tuition increases.

Two universities — Eastern Michigan University and Oakland University – increased tuition beyond the 3.2 percent cap.

Universities that do so lose some state funding for a year.

Presidents of both universities went before a joint hearing last week to defend the increases.

Now committee members are deciding what to do next. State Senator Tonya Schuitmaker says one option is to withhold state dollars for two or three years.

Another idea, floated by State Senator Curtis Hertel, is to look at tuition increases over a couple of years instead of just one year as a benchmark for the state cap.