WASHINGTON -- University System of Maryland colleges may face "modest" tuition increases next year because of the recession, Chancellor William Kirwan said.

"In this fiscal time, yes, we may see some modest increase in tuition," Kirwan said after a College Board news conference Dec. 10.

Maryland has had a three-year tuition freeze for in-state undergraduate students at public universities. Before the freeze, the University System of Maryland raised tuition by as much as 33 percent from 2002 to 2004 to help counter budget deficits and declining state aid.

Under the freeze, Maryland went from the sixth- to the 16th-highest in-state tuition nationally.

Keeping a tuition freeze "is going to be a challenge," Kirwan said. "I don't think there's any prospect we will return to double-digit tuition increases. ... If there is an increase in tuition, it will be what we all consider a modest level."

Gov. Martin O'Malley hasn't made a decision on a tuition freeze for next year, spokesman Shaun Adamec said.

"The cuts have been felt all around," he said. "The governor would like to continue" the tuition freeze, Adamec said, but "it's too early to tell. The governor has been clear that nothing can be off the table."

Maryland will have an estimated $1 billion shortfall in the next fiscal year. On Oct. 15, O'Malley approved more than $345 million in budget cuts and more are expected.

The University System of Maryland will likely take action on tuition in January or early February, Kirwan said.

At Towson University, in-state students pay $5,180 and out-of-state students pay $15,726 per year. Additional fees can add up to $700. At the University of Maryland, College Park, in-state tuition is $6,566 and out-of-state tuition is $21,637, with $1,439 in additional fees, this academic year. .

The Maryland Board of Regents meets Friday to discuss and pass a furlough plan in anticipation of further budget cuts, Kirwan said. The plan will give campuses flexibility, but one principle will be to tier furlough days by income.

University of Maryland, College Park, President Dan Mote announced in a campuswide e-mail Monday that if O'Malley signs an executive order for state employees making more than $60,000 to take five furlough days, he and university employees will participate, Mote said.

Statewide furloughs are expected to save $34 million, according to the governor's plan.

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