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A tuition hike is in the works at the state capitol.  After months of what looked like a tuition neutral legislative session, the Florida House is breaking ranks with the Governor and the Senate and pursuing a six percent increase.  The suggested tuition hike is furthering the divide between the Florida House and the Governor.

Before the 2013 legislative session began, Presidents of Florida’s public universities gathered in Tallahassee and promised not to raise tuition.

The schools are seeking an extra 118 million dollars.  If the legislature gives them the money, they promise not to increase tuition for a year.   They may not have a choice, says House Speaker Will Weatherford. “We may see a smaller tuition increase.  It’s not going to be a double digit increase or anything like that,” says Weatherford.

In a one-on-one interview with Florida House Speaker Will Weatherford Monday, Weatherford says it’s hard to find the cash the schools are seeking

“Unfortunately we don’t have 418 million dollars, but we’ve got about 360.  So to bridge the gap and to get them to the ask that they had, there’s a six percent tuition increase, but not a 15.  We think a 15 is too high” says the House Speaker, whose word is gospel for his majority party.

Governor Rick Scott has long opposed tuition increases.  He is holding his ground.  “I’m against tuition increases.  This is a tax.  It’s a tax on students.  It’s a tax on families.  We can’t be raising the cost to get higher education in this state” says the Governor.

This is the second time this session the House has openly opposed the governor.

The first was over the Medicaid Expansion.   Scott changed his stance on accepting the money to expand the entitlement last month, but couldn’t convince enough House members to change position.