UT System expands free tuition and fees to all undergraduates whose families make $100,000 or less

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The University of Texas System is expanding its free tuition program so undergraduate students whose families make $100,000 or less will receive free tuition and fees starting next fall.

A committee of the UT Board of Regents gave preliminary approval to expand the Promise Plus Program on Wednesday. The full board gave final approval Thursday. Now, the system will send $35 million directly to the universities to support the expansion which will apply to eligible students at all nine universities.

“To be in a position to make sure our students can attend a UT institution without accruing more debt is very important to all of us, and as long as we are here, we will continue our work to provide an affordable, accessible education to all who choose to attend a UT institution,” Board Chair Kevin Eltife said in a statement.

Tuition and fees vary depending on the university within the system. At the University of Texas at Austin, tuition and fees are $10,858. At the University of Texas at El Paso, they cost $8,947.

Students must be Texas residents enrolled full-time in an undergraduate program and apply for applicable state and financial aid to qualify.

The expansion is the latest move by the regents to make college more affordable for students. In 2019, the regents created a $167 million endowment at the University of Texas at Austin to provide free tuition and fees for in-state undergraduate students whose families make less than $65,000; it also provided tuition support to students from families who made under $125,000. Three years later, regents established the Promise Plus Program with a $300 million endowment fund to help other UT system universities expand their existing financial aid programs.

According to the UT system, the UT-El Paso expanded the income threshold for free tuition from $60,000 to $75,000, reaching 75% of households in the region.

In recent years, many universities and community colleges in Texas and across the country have launched similar tuition programs to increase college access for low-income students and to encourage enrollment for those who might be hesitant to take on student debt. Many universities structure these programs so they pay what’s left on a student’s tuition bill after federal or state grants have been applied.

The $35 million will come from endowment distributions, the Available University Fund — investment returns from a state fund that provides money from the UT system — and other resources, the system said in a press release.

The money will immediately expand the number of UT system students who will receive free tuition and fees next year, and also ensure the Promise Plus program is supported in perpetuity.

“Across UT institutions, enrollment is growing, and student debt is declining, indicating success in both access and affordability,” said Chancellor James Milliken in a statement. “That’s a rare trend in American higher education, and I’m proud the UT System is in a position to be a leader.”

Since launching the original free tuition program, the percentage of UT system graduates with debt has declined from 54% in 2019 to 48% in 2023, according to the UT system.

On Thursday, a group of far-right lawmakers sent a list of questions to UT board members, slamming them for offering free tuition and asking if they would ask for a reduction in state funding this upcoming session.

“Nothing is free," Rep. Brian Harrison, R-Midlothian, said in a statement on the social media site X. "This outrageous abuse of power by unelected, executive branch bureaucrats makes higher education in Texas more socialist than California. A decision this consequential should only be made by the legislature."

The Texas Tribune partners with Open Campus on higher education coverage.