SACRAMENTO, CA - How long has it been since you heard a story that made your blood boil? I was recently treated to one at the California Postsecondary Education Commission, where I serve as a commissioner. At our last meeting Jonathon Brown, president of the Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities, related the nightmare experienced by Point Loma College in San Diego.

According to Mr. Brown, Point Loma planned to build a $2.1-million facility to house married students on
campus. In order to build the structure, though, the college had to get the approval of the local planning
department. The government planners told the college’s representatives that they could construct the building,
but only for a price. How big a price? Try $780,000 in government fees, which amounted to 37 percent--more
than one third--of the facility’s total cost.

Point Loma officials wondered why the government’s fees were so high. The planners responded that $180,000
covered planning and review costs, i.e., the cost of scrutinizing and processing the college’s building
plan. But what about the other $600,000? Here’s where the story gets truly Orwellian.

It turned out that $300,000 in fees were designated as “transportation mitigation fees.” The government
planners explained that since San Diego has a lot of traffic congestion, the fees were needed to offset the
increased traffic caused by the Point Loma project. Point Loma officials responded with the obvious, that
since many of their students are commuters, building an on-campus housing facility would actually decrease
traffic congestion. According to Mr. Brown, the government planners agreed that this was indeed true,
but still imposed the fee.

The remaining $300,000 was charged to “housing impact fees.” The government planners said that because San
Diego has a tight rental market, the fees would be required to offset the college facility’s impact on
local housing. Once again, Point Loma officials correctly argued that building an on-campus facility
would reduce demand in the housing market and free up rental units for other consumers. Yes, replied the
planning apparatchiks, that was true, but Point Loma would still have to come up with the money.

After much argument, bewildered college leaders asked the government planners why they were doing this to
them. According to Mr. Brown’s testimony, the planners, with unbridled arrogance, simply said, “it’s because we
can.” Only the prospect of litigation moved the agency to slightly reduce the fees. But Mr. Brown also
testified about other regulatory costs.

Compliance with the mandates of the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) for just six California
private-sector universities totalled $40 million. Further, many private universities, such as Pepperdine
and Stanford, have borne significant costs trying to comply with state regulations such as the California
Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).

If you wonder why college tuition is going through the roof, look no further than your local, state, and
federal governments. If we want to make college more affordable, we should get government off the backs of
colleges and universities. Class dismissed.

- By Lance T. Izumi