On February 25, a Senate committee of the Maryland General Assembly will begin to review proposed legislation that links predictable, stable tuition rates to predictable, adequate funding for higher education.

Thirty senators led by Senator Brian Frosh have sponsored the Access to Quality in Higher Education Act of 2004, SB 112. Similarly, on the House side, UMBC alumna and House Speaker Pro Tem, Delegate Adrienne Jones with Appropriations Committee Chairman Norman Conway and House Speaker Michael Busch have led thirty colleagues to sponsor the Higher Education Affordability and Access Act of 2004, HB1188.

Both bills address key criteria endorsed by the USM Board of Regents in a resolution which has been widely disseminated to both elected officials and USM advocates:

**Protect the high quality of the UMBC education valued by our students, alumni and their families, through appropriate and more stable funding levels, and

**Provide for affordable access to that quality higher education through reasonable tuition.

We can achieve stable tuition, adequate funding, a valued work force and continued momentum for all that UMBC has achieved with your help. Please contact your representatives and let them know that you value quality and access in Maryland public education.

Write or e-mail your representatives about SB 112 and HB 1188
Take a few minutes now to write, call or e-mail your representatives. Ask them for their support for legislation that protects high quality and affordability. Tell them your UMBC success story, express your pride in Maryland public higher education and ask for their help in sustaining its great strides.

Need to locate your delegate or senator?

Read the February 25 USM testimony to the Senate Budget & Taxation Committee.

For the latest information on the legislative session, visit Voices for UMBC.