Cal State University to hike summer fees

A judge ruled today that the California State University may add another charge to most students who take summer school classes.

The ruling means that about 75,000 students expected to take courses this summer at Cal State campuses will have to pay more for classes than they did during the regular year.

The Cal State system can now move forward with a plan to raise fees by $80 per unit. Students who take heavy summer course loads may see their bills go up by $1,000. That’s likely to put a strain on many student and parent budgets. Cal State raised student fees last year by more than 30 percent.

Lawyers representing students on four Cal State campuses filed a lawsuit last month in an effort to block the summer school fee increase. The suit argued that shifting state funding away from summer courses and forcing students to pick up the cost of those classes through fee increases violates state law.

In the last two years, lawmakers have cut more than $600 million from Cal State’s budget. That’s led the university to cap student enrollment, and to require faculty and staff to take unpaid days off.