The Republican-controlled state budget-writing committee extended a tuition freeze for undergraduate residents attending University of Wisconsin campuses over the next two academic years.
But the Joint Finance Committee again declined to “fund the freeze” and provide the UW System with state money to offset what campuses would have received from inflation-level tuition hikes. Evers proposed extending the tuition freeze two more years, but called for campuses to receive $50 million to recoup part of what’s been lost in the six years the freeze has been in place. Republicans rejected that part of his proposal.
The committee, in a 12-4 party-line vote Tuesday, approved a roughly $58 million increase to the System’s total budget over the next two fiscal years, about a fourth of which will go toward standard budget adjustments or debt service. The $45 million that campuses may gain is less than half of what Democratic Gov. Tony Evers and System officials requested.
The $45 million allocation approved by Republicans is aimed at allowing campuses to expand academic programming in high-demand fields, such as business and technology.