Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon is urging college administrators to think twice before proposing large tuition increases in response to state budget cuts.
Nixon has proposed to cut state aid to public colleges and universities by 12.5 percent for the next school year. But the governor indicated a corresponding increase in student tuition would be unreasonable. Missouri law generally limits tuition increases to the rate of inflation, unless schools get special permission for larger increases from the state higher education commissioner. The rate of inflation was 3 percent this past year. Nixon said college officials should do the best they can to stay within that amount when setting tuition. Last year, Nixon withheld state money from universities that he deemed to have increased tuition by too much.
