The 2025 Wisconsin State Senate Committee on Universities and Technical Colleges held hearings on Republican-sponsored bills that were proposed in the past week. One bill would use tuition-increase freezes on Universities of Wisconsin campuses as a penalty for free speech violations and the other would cap tuition increases in order to prioritize affordable education. 

The first bill, Senate Bill 498, introduced by Rep. Amanda Nedewski, R-Pleasant Prairie, proposed this initiative to protect free speech on UW system campuses, with an effort to restrict funding to any university that doesn’t comply, according to Wisconsin Examiner. 

SB 498 seeks to expand free speech, due process in disciplinary proceedings and accountability of the UW system. 

Some provisions of the bill express that universities may not “restrict speech protected under the First Amendment” as long as the speaker’s conduct remains lawful and does not substantially disrupt the functioning of the institution or technical college, according to the bill. 

Bill 498 additionally proposes that universities may not “maintain and enforce time, place, and manner restrictions on expressive activities” in both outdoor and indoor settings nor designate any area of a campus a “free speech zone.” The bill gives way to a due process guarantee for all students, clubs, and organizations in the UW system, stated on the Wisconsin Legislature site. 

If due process provisions — notice of charges, proper hearings or proper standards of proof —  are violated more than once in a five-year period, then the campus would be required to freeze tuition increases for students for two academic years afterward, according to the bill.

Interim Vice President for University Relations Chis Patton said in an email that many of the requirements in this legislation are already in practice such as enshrining protections for academic freedom and free expression.

“We believe that our adherence to constitutional law and current board policy best serves to uphold this commitment,” Patton said in the email. 

Patton said additional requirements added to the statute are unnecessary.

UW-Madison also responded to the Senate Committee on Universities and Technical Colleges, in an Oct. 15 testimony that the statutes undermine their pre-existing system for safeguarding free speech.

UW-Madison said in the testimony that the bill allows for unintended adverse claims that have the potential for abuse and introduces inconsistency with constitutional protections for freedom of expression. UW-Madison said it has already undertaken to strengthen free speech, academic freedom and respectful discourse on campus, such as the UW Commitment to Academic Freedom and Freedom of Expression policy, according to the testimony. 

The second bill, Senate Bill 399, introduced by Sen. André Jacque, R-New Franken, and  Sen. Dave Murphy, R-Hortonville, works to cap tuition increases to remain equal to or lower than what the U.S. Consumer Price Index increases by each year. 

CPI is determined by the average change in inflation over time in the prices paid by consumers for fixed goods. The bill would ensure that a tuition increase in the UW system would remain lower than the inflation growth percentage, with the goal of prioritizing stability and tuition affordability.

Jacque said everyone is better served when they have a sense of predictability with tuition increases. 

“[The tuition cap] is something that the administration can know what those limitations are and plan accordingly, and so can students and their families,” Jacque said.

Jacque said he sees the bill as a solution to slowing intense tuition hikes over the upcoming years.  

In the testimony, UW-Madison said tuition increases are necessary due to unprecedented levels of inflation and supply chain challenges, meaning modest tuition increases would be needed now more than ever to keep up with rising costs. 

Jacque said it is a concern that schools are outpacing CPI levels right after a record investment recently put into the UW system, and Bill 399 could help. 

“I think that it should be a guardrail that’s put in place to make sure we are having the UW system stay within its means to stay affordable,” Jacque said.

UW also said Bill 399 would hinder its ability to remain competitive and a world-class institution, according to the testimony. The university said instead of focusing on CPI, there should be a goal to keep tuition at pace with other Big 10 schools nationwide, according to the testimony.