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House, Senate Agree On College Tuition Hike

TALLAHASSEE (CBSMiami/NSF) – Up against the clock to reach a deal on a $70 billion dollar budget, the Florida Senate and House negotiating committee agreed Wednesday to boost tuition five percent for state colleges.

Earlier in the day, they agreed not to increase base tuition at the state's 11 public universities.

The talks are part of efforts by lawmakers to bridge their differences over the budget for the coming fiscal year, which begins July 1.

Students at the 28 state universities are still likely to see increases in their bills thanks to the state's differential tuition plan; those hikes could hit 15 percent.

There are still substantial differences between the chambers on higher education, most notably on whether to write into law a plan for the independence of the University of South Florida's Lakeland campus which is a priority of Senate Budget Chairman JD Alexander, R-Lake Wales.

Governor Rick Scott has said he opposes raising the cost of college at this time.

The News Service of Florida contributed to this report.

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