Statewide, Iowa (RI) – A bill that would freeze undergraduate tuition at Iowa’s three public universities for five years has won overwhelming approval in the Iowa House.
The tuition rate set for this fall at the University of Iowa, Iowa State University and the University of Northern Iowa would be in place through July of 2031 if the bill becomes law. Representative Taylor Collins, a Republican from Mediapolis, says it would give students predictability and push the universities to cut costs.
The bill passed on an 86-to-5 vote. Democrats like Representative Adam Zabner (ZAB-ner) of Iowa City have recently proposed freezing students’ tuition, but they also argue the state support Iowa, Iowa State and UNI needs to increase.
Zabner says the state needs to provide more than a third of the funding for the three state universities. If the tuition freeze were to go into effect, the Legislative Services Agency estimates Iowa, Iowa State and UNI would get about $200 million less in tuition revenue during the five year period.
KIWA Staff Photo
