House Democrats are preparing to begin moving legislation next week that would call for the state to cover the cost of tuition for Pennsylvania students enrolled in the state’s public universities.

Under House Bill 2084, in-state students from families with income less than $250,000 a year would be eligible for scholarships covering the cost of tuition at state-related or state-owned universities. Students in families with income less than $60,000 would also be eligible for scholarships to cover the cost of room and board.

An Education Committee vote is set for Wednesday, one day after Gov. Josh Shapiro presents his budget plan for 2026-27.

The PA Promise scholarships proposed in HB 2084 would only cover the cost left over after all other federal, state and institutional scholarships are included. Proponents say these types of “last dollar” scholarship programs have been enacted in 30 states, including Maryland, New York, Hawaii, Oregon, Rhode Island, Montana, Minnesota, Kentucky, Arkansas, Nevada, West Virginia, Indiana and Washington.

“Together we can improve college access and affordability, reduce the financial burden on Pennsylvania’s students and their families, and provide support for our community colleges, state system, and state-related universities,” Rep. Jordan Harris, D-Philadelphia, the chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, said in a statement.

The effort comes as colleges have been struggling to recruit students, particularly in areas of the state where population has been declining. Those demographic challenges are aggravated by rising college costs, concerns about debt and the long-term value of a college education as artificial intelligence is being deployed in workplaces.

Advocates for boosting state aid for higher education have also long complained that Pennsylvania covers less of the cost of public college tuition than most other states. On average, college students in Pennsylvania foot the cost of 63% of their education, far above the national average of 39%.

A companion bill was introduced in the state Senate in December by Sen. Vince Hughes, D-Philadelphia. The measure was referred to the Education Committee in that chamber, but it has not been put up for a vote yet.

The scholarship program would be administered by the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency. The agency would be required to complete an annual report detailing the number of students who benefited from the scholarship, including a breakdown showing who benefited by race, gender and income level.

The report would also include how many scholarships went to students at each university and what majors those students were pursuing.

This proposal follows similar, though far less ambitious efforts undertaken by lawmakers in recent years.

Act 89 of 2024 created the GROW PA scholarship program aimed at providing financial assistance to college students enrolled in high-demand fields. More than 4,000 students received scholarships, worth an average $4,650, Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency officials said.

The scholarships were available to college students pursuing degrees leading to 72 different job types.

Under the GROW PA Scholarship Program, the students are eligible to receive the scholarships in exchange for a commitment to work at least one year in the state after graduation for every year they received scholarship funding. If graduates don’t satisfy the residency requirement, their scholarships will be converted to loans.

College enrollment trends

The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education reported a combined enrollment of 83,000 this academic year. That was a 0.6% increase over the prior year, but it’s down 30% from the system’s peak in 2010-11, when there were almost 120,000 students enrolled.

Enrollment at Penn State’s main campus in State College is nearly 43,000 this year, the highest it has ever been. But declining enrollment at Penn State’s 20 branch campuses prompted university officials to announce plans to close seven locations — DuBois, Fayette, Mont Alto, New Kensington, Shenango, Wilkes-Barre and York.

Enrollment at the University of Pittsburgh’s main campus is over 31,000, up 9% since 2016. Enrollment at Pitt’s four branch campuses was up slightly this year compared to last year. However, the number of students enrolled at the Pitt campuses in Bradford, Greensburg, Johnstown and Titusville is down almost 30% since 2016.

Temple University has reported record-breaking classes of first-year students in each of the last two years. Enrollment this year is just over 30,000. That’s down 20% compared to a decade ago.

Public school enrollment declining, too

It is not surprising that college enrollment has been stagnating because the number of school-aged students in Pennsylvania has been declining, as well.

State estimates show there are about 138,000 12th graders this school year, a modest increase over the 2024-25 school year. That was about 6,000 more high school seniors than the state had three years earlier. Department of Education projections suggest that uptick isn’t going to hold.

The state is projecting there will be less than 133,000 high school seniors in 2029-30.

There are now roughly 119,000 first graders. By 2029-30, the number of first graders is expected to drop below 114,000.