Depending on which way you cross the Minnesota-Wisconsin border to attend a state college, you could stand to gain or lose anywhere from $1000 to $3000 in yearly tuition payments, thanks to a widening tuition gap between the states.
That is why the University of Minnesota is attempting to renegotiate its decades-old tuition reciprocity agreement with Wisconsin, alleging that the system has become unfair to Minnesota students and taxpayers.
On the surface, they're entirely correct. Years ago, when reciprocity was introduced, Wisconsin and Minnesota tuitions were nearly equivalent.
Now, as Minnesota schools have increased tuition rates much faster than Wisconsin's, residents of the Gopher State pay significantly more to attend the same schools as Wisconsin residents. Every year, Wisconsin refunds the cost differential to Minnesota's state government (in 2005, $6.5 million) but the U of M is now pushing to have Wisconsin residents pay Minnesota tuition rates when attending Minnesota schools.
The request seems like common sense but it misidentifies the problem. Reciprocity was not primarily created to balance tuition rates between states, but to save students from paying lofty non-resident rates when crossing the St. Croix River to attend college. In this respect the program is still very much a success.
The problem is that Wisconsin's refund is paid to the State of Minnesota and not the university system itself. Minnesota Gov. Tim Paulenty continues to support reciprocity, but should use his lawmaking leverage to ensure Wisconsin's refund goes in to the U of M in full. At best, it's a temporary fix to the tuition disparity, but until each state's government finds a way to stabilize skyrocketing tuition rates, it may be the best option.
