Rising workforce costs and other inflationary pressures could result in higher education tuition increases for Idaho students this coming fall.
Speaking to the joint budget committee Monday, State Board of Education President Kurt Liebich said it’s too early to estimate the size of any increase. However, Liebich noted that state funding only covers about half the cost of the 5% change in employee compensation that Gov. Brad Little included in his fiscal 2023 budget recommendation. The governor’s 2023 budget includes $11.7 million in additional general fund support for college and university salaries, as well as $8.5 million in dedicated funding. That includes $5.76 million in combined funding for the University of Idaho and another $1.24 million for Lewis-Clark State College. But all of the institutions have employees who aren’t covered by the state funding.
Consequently, they’ll have to come up with other funding sources to pay the full cost of the 5% wage increase, which Liebich says will have to come from tuition. Tuition is one of the major barriers for high school graduates who want to attend college. In recognition of that, Idaho’s four public colleges and universities have largely held the line on resident undergraduate tuition rates the past three academic years. Meanwhile the state’s four community colleges haven’t increased tuition for four or five years. But Liebich said that practice will likely come to an end this fall. (Lewiston Tribune)
