Governor Scott Walker says the University of Wisconsin System should extend a tuition freeze for another two years, on top of a two year freeze that is already included in the current state budget. The freeze adopted last summer was the first in UW System history.
“After years of tuition hikes, it is important to give our students and their families a break. Our proposed second two-year tuition freeze will go a long way to helping working families and students have access to higher education,” said Governor Walker.
Walker’s request comes a day after the UW System announced that it expects to end its fiscal year in June with a budget surplus of about $1.1 billion. The tuition freeze was added to the state budget last year after a similar surplus was uncovered, drawing harsh criticism from state lawmakers. System officials have since proposed policies aimed at reducing the ability of campuses to build up large cash reserves, which the Board of Regents is expected to take up on Friday.