*This report was replaced in its entirety by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia on August 5, 2020.

Pursuant to section § 23.1-307 of the Code of Virginia, public institutions of higher education may not approve an increase in undergraduate tuition or mandatory fees without providing students and the public a projected range of the planned increase, an explanation of the need for the increase, and notice of the date, time and location of the meeting at which public comment is permitted. Institutions’ boards of visitors must permit public comment and establish policies, which may include reasonable time limitations.

In addition, section G of the Code requires the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) to submit a report on the required public comment, as follows:

No later than August 1 of each year, the Council shall provide to the Governor and the Chairmen of the House Committee on Appropriations, the House Committee on Education, the Senate Committee on Education and Health, and the Senate Committee on Finance a report on any increase in undergraduate tuition and mandatory fees at a public institution of higher education, the public comment relating to such increase in undergraduate tuition and mandatory fees, and any deviation in the increase in undergraduate tuition and mandatory fees from the increase projected in the institutional six-year plan provided pursuant to § 23.1-306.

SCHEV annually reports on Tuition and Fees at public institutions of higher education by August 1 of each year. The Tuition and Fee report fulfills the first and third required components described in § 23.1-307 G, regarding increases in undergraduate tuition and mandatory fees, as well as any deviation in the increase from that projected in the institutional six-year plan. Thus, this report focuses solely on the second topic, public comment relating to increases in undergraduate tuition and mandatory fees. General observations of the process are included in the subsequent pages. Appendix 1 includes the nature of how comments were received and what institutions submitted to SCHEV as their general characterization of the public comment period.