NIU Student Regent Nick Valadez said Thursday he would like the Board of Regents to re-evaluate the $150 tuition increase in the spring and justify why it can or cannot reduce tuition during fiscal year 1989.

Valadez said he met with NIU President John LaTourette Thursday to discuss where the university stands on Valadez’ proposal. He also said he wanted the president to explain how such a policy, if enacted, would affect the university.

Valadez said he will ask the Regents at their December board meeting if they would discuss the possibility of reducing the tuition increase should the legislature provide additional funds. Such discussions would take place when the Regents work on FY89 appropriations. Regents Chancellor Roderick Groves said that would occur in either March or April.

“My argument is because the tuition increase was based completely on revenue shortfall (budget cut), it does not accurately reflect the cost of education,” Valadez said. “That kind of increase should be re-evaluated in the spring.”

Valadez said the Regents have stated they would look into reducing tuition if general revenue funds were increased enough to warrant it. He said that possibility is unlikely to occur. But he said he still would like the Regents to document why they cannot reduce tuition, a task Valadez said the chancellor’s staff should be able to complete.

“That doesn’t mean I’m advocating a tuition rollback,” he said. “If the legislature doesn’t act, the board can’t do anything. What I’m saying is the board should ask for some of the money back and should not accept the legislature’s shift in educational policy. I fully appreciate the fact that it probably will not happen.”

Valadez said if the Regents do not take this action, the increase will not be looked back on as an emergency procedure to restore funds the governor took away. When the legislature considers FY89 appropriations, it will include the tuition increase as part of the income fund universities have, he said. Valadez said he wants the legislature to consider the universities’ income fund without the increase.

“I want to see the board get some of the money back that was artificially added this year through the tuition increase,” Valadez said.

Groves said he thinks legislators are aware of the tuition increase and he does not expect much of an increase, if any, next year. He said the Regents generally look at tuition every year during the spring.

The chancellor said he does not think the $150 increase should be reviewed simply because new programs were not implemented. The increase had an effect on students because otherwise students would have less classes from which to choose, he said.

Valadez said LaTourette argued against making a tuition adjustment. He said the president said the university needs to know that tuition money will be there so it could make plans for the upcoming year.

Valadez said LaTourette also pointed out the legislature probably has made up its mind about where it stands on higher education funding.

Valadez said the president does not think it is likely that the legislature would consider replacing the $150 increase with general revenue funds. But Valadez said one argument the legislature might go along with is because students were the ones to make up Gov. James Thompson’s 4 percent budget cut for NIU, the legislature could give higher education 4 percent more in GRF.

LaTourette could not be reached for comment Thursday.