PSU tuition hinges on legislation

Delayed agreement on gaming bill could tax universities

Anne Danahy

Penn State President Graham Spanier and presidents of the other state-related universities say further delays in passing legislation authorizing table games could mean higher tuition rates for the spring semester.

CDT file

Aerial photograph of the Penn State University Old Main Building. June 18, 2002

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“In order to maintain the low tuition increases at our universities, there needs to be assurance that the funding levels in our pending appropriation bills will be enacted soon,” reads the Oct. 21 letter from the four university presidents to House Speaker Keith McCall, D-Carbon.

In October, three months into the 2009-10 fiscal year, the state finally reached agreement on a budget, which assumed the approval of a table games bill to raise $200 million for the cash-strapped state government. Until a bill is approved, Rendell and House Democrats are holding up discretionary taxpayer dollars slated for Penn State, Pitt, Temple and Lincoln universities because, he said, it would create a deficit next year.

Penn State is waiting for $334 million.

Penn State spokeswoman Lisa Powers said Wednesday that “at this point, if the figures in the Senate bill that has already passed are what is approved and signed as our appropriation, we see no reason to alter spring tuition.”

But, she said in an e-mail, should the General Assembly “fail to approve a budget along the lines proposed, or should they further delay the approval unreasonably, our trustees might find themselves in the position where spring tuition charges would have to be revisited. Each day of delay is costly to the university and its students.”

In July, Penn State approved a 4.5 percent tuition increase for in-state students at University Park in 2009-10. Next semester’s bills are slated to be sent out Nov. 13.

The university’s board of trustees is scheduled to meet Friday, but Powers said it is not expected to consider any tuition increase.

Powers said that if the university does have to revisit tuition after the bills have already been mailed, another bill would have to be sent.

“It’s not a scenario we want to see,” she said.

Senate Republicans say the budget agreement is designed to generate a projected surplus of more than $200 million this fiscal year, leaving no reason for Rendell to hold up approval of the universities’ money.

“There’s no legal issue that’s holding it up,” said Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Jake Corman, R-Benner Township.

A meeting Wednesday between Gov. Ed Rendell and legislative leaders on a bill to legalize and tax casino table games such as poker broke up without an agreement on key issues.

Rendell spokesman Gary Tuma said the governor thinks the state tax rate on table gaming revenue needs to be at least 16 percent to generate the revenue the state is counting on to balance the budget this year and next year.

McCall’s press secretary, Bob Caton, said that “right now the big sticking point is the tax rate.”

He said getting the legislation passed by Nov. 13 would be “optimistic.”

While they understand the situation the state-relateds are in, McCall said, “we want to make sure this is done right the first time.”

Anne Danahy can be reached at 231-4648. The Associated Press contributed to this report.