Report: Tuition in Texas up 55 percent since 2003

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) – A newspaper analysis shows that college costs at state universities have risen 55 percent since Texas lawmakers deregulated tuition a decade ago.

The Dallas Morning News (http://dallasne.ws/PN5U1D) reported Sunday that a typical semester now runs the average state resident more than $7,500 in tuition and fees. Before deregulation, average tuition hovered around $4,000.

The steeper costs are putting the state’s premier campuses out of reach for many families. Most expensive is the University of Texas at Dallas, where the average student pays more than $11,500 for an entire academic year.

Gov. Rick Perry this week called for incoming freshman on Texas campuses to be able to lock in tuition rates for four years, guarding them against price hikes before graduating. The Legislature will likely look at the idea.