The University of California's governing board will not be asked to vote on raising tuition at next month's meeting, so officials and students can continue lobbying for more state funding, UC President Janet Napolitano said Thursday.
A planned vote on the contentious topic is off the table for the UC Regents' May meeting, but officials cannot yet rule out the possibility of a tuition hike for the 2018-19 academic year if state funding is deemed insufficient.
"Raising tuition is always a last resort and one we take very seriously," Napolitano said in a statement. "Depending on the outcome of the budget negotiations in Sacramento, the university may, at a later date, consider the issue of a modest tuition increase for the 2018-19 academic year."
The UC Board of Regents was scheduled to consider a proposed increase of $342, or 2.7 percent, in annual tuition and fees for the 2018-19 academic year. California residents currently pay $12,630 in tuition and fees annually.
The regents separately approved a 3.5 percent, or $978, tuition hike for out-of-state undergraduates in March, saying, however, that increase would be rescinded if more state funding is obtained. The increase puts tuition and fees for out-of-state undergraduates at nearly $42,000 next year, more than triple what California residents pay.