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TIM POST: If the governor uses his powers to reduce higher education funding, officials from both the U of M and the Minnesota State Colleges and University system say tuition will rise maybe by double-digit amounts. Both systems laid out their concerns at the Capitol over the weekend.

MnSCU chancellor James McCormick said he wasn't there to whine about the potential for cuts to MnSCU's budget, but he found it interesting that the discussion comes at a time when the state's colleges and universities are dealing with an increase in enrollment.

JAMES MCCORMICK: More students, less money. We're trying to be very efficient, working hard at that, and at the same time, we worry about that tuition.

TIM POST: University of Minnesota president Robert Bruininks also worried aloud about the cost of tuition if the governor chooses to make big cuts to his school's budget. Bruininks said if the U's share of the cut over two years was around $200 million, the U raise tuition to make up for the funding gap.

ROBERT BRUININKS: It would put the tuition increase clearly comfortably in-- uncomfortably in double-digit territory and probably pretty close to 15%.

TIM POST: Bruininks admitted a 15% tuition hike would be too much for students and their families. A smaller increase would be more likely, paired with other cuts at the U. Bruininks claims as many as 750 jobs could be eliminated.

Some lawmakers questioned why the governor would cut as deeply as $190 million. That would take funding below 2006, 2007 levels for the state's colleges. That's about $3.5 billion. Under Federal Rules, a cut that deep means the state wouldn't be eligible for federal stimulus funds that were set aside to ease the burden of tuition increases at Minnesota colleges.

The talk of double-digit tuition increases has other lawmakers like Republican Senator Claire Robling asking schools to dip into their reserve funds to make up for the shortfall.

CLAIRE ROBLING: And when you think about it, the state is using all of our reserve balances pretty well. And I guess that other institutions dependent on the state probably will have to do the same thing during this tough economic time.

TIM POST: Officials at MnSCU and the U of M say they will tap their reserve funds, which total in the tens of millions of dollars, but they don't want to zero them out. The higher education budget bill Governor Pawlenty signed over the weekend contains a measure requiring the U and MnSCU keep tuition increases at no more than 3% a year in each of the next two years.

But DFL Senator Sandy Pappas says if the governor cuts further into the higher ed budget, that cap on tuition is a requirement the state's colleges should not have to abide by.

SANDY PAPPAS: I just don't think we can hold them to their promise and our requirement to hold down tuition increases. So instead of the 3% tuition increase that we're promised, we would see something significantly higher, maybe even double digits, like we did in 2003.

TIM POST: In 2003, Governor Pawlenty cut about $200 million from both MnSCU and the U of M's two-year budgets. Not many students would willingly agree to a tuition increase, but the Minnesota State University Student Association says a 5% increase in each of the next two years would be reasonable.

[? Jennifer ?] [? Weil ?] is vice chair of the Student Association and just graduated from Minnesota State University at Moorhead over the weekend. [? Weil ?] says students shouldn't face big increases in tuition when they're also dealing with the tough economy.

SPEAKER 1: Students are having a hard time finding employment. Their savings are depleted, as well as their parental support.

TIM POST: The recently passed federal stimulus bill could provide students with some relief from rising tuition. The higher education bill, as it stands now, provides the University of Minnesota and MnSCU about $90 million in the next two years to hold down the cost of tuition.

Higher education officials admit that will only provide a modest amount of relief if the governor hands Minnesota colleges an even bigger budget challenge. Tim Post, Minnesota Public Radio news.