February 8, 2008

Congress's Cost Cure May Have Side Effects

Critics say the proposal would unfairly punish less-expensive colleges

By Kelly Field

Washington

As more and more families worry about the rising cost of a college education, members of Congress believe they have found a way to press institutions to rein in their tuition: federal watch lists.

Their plan, which is included in legislation to renew the Higher Education Act that the House of Representatives will debate this week, would require the Education Department to publish on its Web site and on paper a list of institutions whose tuition and fees outpaced their sectors'