TOPEKA – House Majority Leader Ray Merrick released preliminary numbers addressing the deferred maintenance backlog today.  The budgetary information from the Kansas Board of Regents shows disparity between Kansas’ flagship universities’ tuition in relation to their peer institutions.

 
“Kansans are paying a premium for education at state universities and should not pay another penny toward increasing tuition rates,” said Merrick. “There is a real problem with the way the Kansas Board of Regents has built their budgets and paid for expenses.  Crumbling classrooms need attention but Kansas families have paid enough”.

 
Research shows a vast disparity in tuition rates between resident and non-resident students and between Kansas universities and peer institutions.  Information provided by the Kansas Board of Regents and the Chronicle of Higher Education indicates that non-residents pay an average of $3000 less per year to attend Kansas Regent schools than they would at peer institutions across the country. 

 
KU and K-State students are paying between 11-15% more in tuition than students at peer institutions.  In addition, non-resident students are paying an average of 20% less to come to Kansas schools than Kansan students pay when they go elsewhere. 

 
“Kansans are upside down on the cost of higher education,” said Merrick. “This is bad policy that encourages our students to look elsewhere for an education while providing a $3000 discount for students from outside of Kansas”. 

 
Raising non-resident tuition rates to the national average would produce a $33.5 million dollar a year revenue stream.  This adjustment would provide annual revenue for deferred maintenance expenses and protect Kansas students from tuition increases proposed under that pretext.

 
The Kansas Board of Regents estimates the current backlog of deferred maintenance expenses between $500 - $700 million dollars.  Merrick began to study tuition rates over a year ago and saw the connection between disparity and deferred maintenance needs.

 
“The numbers show that Kansas Regents need to be better stewards of Kansas’ education dollars.  Our students should not be expected to subsidize out of state students’ tuition, or the backlog of deferred maintenance” concluded Majority Leader Merrick. “I’m working with Appropriations Chairman Schwartz and the rest of the leadership team to ensure that the disparity dollars are addressed in our comprehensive package for deferred maintenance”.