The governing body for Florida’s 11 public universities voted unanimously today for an across-the-board, 5-percent tuition increase, although a lawsuit has yet to determine if that group, the Board of Governors, has the authority to set tuition rates. Florida legislators, who face a major budget shortfall, approved a 5-percent increase earlier this year, but it was vetoed in May by Gov. Charlie Crist, a Republican.

The tuition increase would bring in about $9.5-million in revenue for the state universities, according to comments in The South Florida Sun-Sentinel. The Board of Governors’ vote, while not yet binding, makes tuition increases more likely for a public-university system that has an average tuition of $2,211 for a 30-credit-hour year. —JJ Hermes