Balls attacked the status quo, a £9,000-a-year tuition cap, which he pointed out is just as expensive to the taxpayer as the system it replaced and is storing up problems for the future.
While Akaka's legislation improved the benefits for many veterans, a $17,500 tuition cap that was part of the bill hurt about 100,000 veterans who attend private schools or out-of-state residents who attend public institutions.
The notable exception is Britain, which raised its tuition cap for local students to £9,000 a year, making it the third-priciest university system in the world, after the United States and South Korea.
He said the government was considering raising the tuition cap to £7,000 and could allow some institutions to charge more.
The increase, far above the Michigan-mandated tuition cap of 3.75percentt, causes the school to lose about $500,000 in state performance funding, according to the Detroit News.
According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the tuition cap of $17,500 will affect veterans enrolled at or planning to attend any private or foreign institution.
By comparison, Britain, which has roughly an equal number of students, raised annual tuition caps last year to £9,000, or $14,000.
In addition to being closer to home for European students, with tuition capped at £9,000, or about $14,000, a year for British and European students, both schools are considerably cheaper than comparable U.S. schools.
Rep. Corey Mock (D-Grand Forks) told The Huffington Post that Democrats have been able to work with Republicans on a number of issues, including increasing education funding, property tax reduction, tuition caps and infrastructure investment.
A task force appointed by Gov. Chris Christie to suggest ways of improving New Jersey's public colleges and universities made dozens of recommendations on Tuesday, including lifting tuition caps and reorganizing the long-troubled University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey.
