The next meeting of the Arizona Board of Regents will be held today and tomorrow in the Memorial Union on the Tempe campus of Arizona State University.

Issues facing the board include a measure to permanently raise the maximum base tuition allowable to a median of regents-approved peer institutions. Currently that level is set at the bottom third of peer tuition rates, a level which the UA and ASU already exceed, and which Northern Arizona University is approaching.

This proposal will not necessarily mandate increases in tuition.  

It says in the proposal that this measure “”will facilitate the success of these alternative delivery methods by allowing the Board to set tuition for these programs with flexibility to lower tuition mid-cycle as needed.””  

The proposal would also allow universities to lower their tuition rates without approval from the board, though the board would still have to sign off on any proposed increases in base tuition.

The UA will also seek approval from the board to approve university awards and grants worth more than $10.5 million.

This figure includes proposals to help urge commercial development in solar energy, and various awards from the National Institute of Health and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.

“”Approval of these awards is critical to the continuation and enhancement of UA’s national leadership role in conducting ground-breaking research and providing top-ranking educational programs,”” the proposal reads.  

The board will also discuss various legislative items currently being debated, and may choose to take official stances on bills that would directly impact the Arizona university system, specifically bills designated as “”potentially detrimental to the university system.”” Bills included in this category include four that would make it legal to carry concealed firearms on college or university campuses and a bill that would bar state funds from being used to subsidize tuition or fees for a student who has already earned at least one baccalaureate degree.  

The regents have not classified any proposed bills as those “”that would help the university system”” at this time.  

The regents will also vote on whether to permanently raise the cap on out-of-state student enrollment to 40 percent of a total university population. This would make permanent a temporary measure that was approved in 2009.

The board will also discuss financial aid plans for the next two fiscal years. For the UA, this plan would entail increasing need-based financial aid by $4.3 million from 2010 to 2012, and merit-based aid by $1.5 million over the next two years. Aid for those students eligible for both need and merit-based financial aid would also increase under the proposal, from $15.2 million to $17.3 million.