The Iowa Board of Regents will release the preliminary tuition increase for the 2002-2003 school year today.

Andy Tofilon, president of the Government of the Student Body, said the regent’s number will be between 10 and 15 percent.

“We can’t see them going any higher,” he said.

Once the regents’ announcement is made, GSB will begin to lobby the board for its own, lower estimates for the increase.

“We have been trying to convince [the regents] to come down from the projections that were so high,” said Charlie Johnson, vice president of GSB. “If it is 10 percent, we would like them to drop it even further.”

Tofilon and Johnson will present their tuition increase number to the GSB Senate at the meeting tonight.

At the presentation, Tofilon and Johnson will go through the first draft of the tuition presentation they will give to the regents, Tofilon said.

The current GSB administration has been working for more than a year on this issue. They have been talking with the regents – especially with the three new regents.

In August, Tofilon and Johnson successfully petitioned President Gregory Geoffroy to wait another year to split out recreational fees from tuition, Tofilon said.

Waiting another year will slow down any future tuition increases, he said.

The pending tuition increase stems from last year’s legislative session, when the budgets for the three regent universities were cut to make up for the state revenue shortfall. Iowa State’s budget was cut by $15.8 million.

Tuition went up 9.9 percent for the 2001-2002 academic year, costing an average in-state student an extra $310 a year.

“We are very excited to bring the students’ case to the regents and very honored to be fighting for the students on something that is so important,” Tofilon said.

The Government of the Student Body Senate will meet tonight at 7:30 in the Campanile Room of the Memorial Union. The following will be discussed:

Special Orders

A seating bill to seat Stacie Dunlap as Director of Minority Affairs. By Kothenbeutel, Luken and others.

General Orders

A bylaw bill to amend the operating procedures for the GSB Supreme Court. By Luken, Kothenbeutel and others.

A bylaw bill to change the election bylaws. By Luken and Kothenbeutel.

A bylaw bill outlining the responsibilities of the clerk of the committee. By Kothenbeutel, Tinder and others.

A funding bill recognizing changes in currently funded organizations. By Tinder, Weaver and others.