Spring semester tuition bills have been sent out to students -- and they don't include the tuition increase that once loomed over Penn State.
Although the university is still waiting on its appropriations from the state, Barry Ciccocioppo, a spokesman for Gov. Ed Rendell, said $334 million in state funding for Penn State has been approved by the state Senate and is now waiting on approval from the House of Representatives.
Tuition bills were released Monday ahead of Penn State receiving its appropriations because the university had to stay on schedule, university spokeswoman Annemarie Mountz said.
The administration is working under the assumption that the amount approved in the Senate will be the final figure allocated to Penn State to cover the university's operating budget -- funds it has not received since the beginning of the fiscal year in July, Mountz said.
However, Mountz said, if the final appropriations should fall short of the proposed $334 million, the current tuition would "have to be revisited," though she said she could not yet speculate as to how that would be handled.
"We are hoping that is not the case," Mountz said. "We're hoping what is in the Senate will be the ultimate."
Currently, the legislature is attempting to balance the recently approved state budget with legislation that would legalize table games. If passed, legislators expect table games to generate at least $200 million for the state and balance the books.
State Rep. Kerry Benninghoff, R-Centre, said he is pleased Penn State was able to refrain from resorting to a tuition hike but hopes the state can "cut the dollars loose as soon as possible."
Benninghoff said the amount owed to Penn State and the other state-related universities -- University of Pittsburgh, Temple University and Lincoln University -- exceeds the revenue the state would generate "even if the gambling bill was done today."
The House has not yet decided on concrete language for the gaming legislation, Benninghoff said, but hopes the funds owed to the schools will be allocated soon.
"The sooner the better, as far as I'm concerned," he said.
Members of both the Council of Commonwealth Student Governments (CCSG) and the University Park Undergraduate Association (UPUA) spent a large portion of last week encouraging students to urge legislators to provide Penn State with its appropriations.
CCSG Governmental Affairs Director DJ Ryan said he was proud of Penn State President Graham Spanier and the Board of Trustees for not allowing any substantial tuition increases.
"It's a big step on their part, even though it's not something they should have to do," Ryan said. "It's something the House should have done a long time ago."
Ryan (junior-communication arts and sciences) said he visited two Commonwealth Campuses last week to spread the message about the potential tuition increase to as many Penn State students as possible.
UPUA Governmental Affairs Committee Chairwoman Colleen Smith (sophomore-biology) said she is glad to see Penn State take action to help students and hopes the legislature can move the appropriations through in an expedient manner.
"I'm happy to see Penn State once again has stuck up for its students and stepped up to the plate when the state hasn't," Smith said.
