SFSU President Robert A. Corrigan (right) testified before the U.S. House of Representatives education committee on Thursday at a session on "The Rising Price of a Quality Postsecondary Education: Fact or Fiction."

The hearing was held by the Committee on Education and the Workforce as it begins a review of the Higher Education Act, the law that governs federal student financial-aid programs.

Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, chairman of the committee, complained that increased federal spending each year on student aid has not kept up with continual college tuition and fee increases, according to an article in The Chronicle of Higher Education.

University officials testifying at the hearing responded that college costs have been rising faster than the rate of inflation due to the need to modernize facilities, keep up with advances in technology, and the competition for high-quality professors.

Corrigan noted the relative low cost for California residents to attend SFSU or any other of the 23 campuses in the California State University system. Annual fees have held steady at about $2,000 for eight years, despite increasing costs the University has been forced to incur.

"Although the price of a CSU education has held steady, the cost of that education has continued to increase," Corrigan said.

Corrigan testified at the hearing with Northeastern University President Richard M. Freeland, University System of Maryland Chancellor William Kirwan, and Williams College economics Professor Gordon Winston.

Read the entire text of Corrigan's testimony on the Committee on Education and the Workforce's Web site.