GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KKCO) - All but one Colorado state college is asking for the ability to raise tuition more than the permitted nine percent.

The Department of Higher Education says schools have submitted their plans requesting to increase student fees more than usual, in the event the state cuts college funding. Mesa State College's president says it's difficult to say whether hikes above nine percent will be made, since no one knows for sure how much funding will slashed.

"Our goal this year, is to be below nine percent. Obviously, that gets directly impacted by what the legislature does. If they cut our appropriation by half, then that's going to impact what we do," says President Tom Foster.

The president says his administration is focused on saving money at MSC as possible too keep tuition as low as possible. Foster says cutting staff and looking for ways to be more efficient, like keeping unneeded buildings closed, are a priority.

The Department of Higher Education says MSC still needs to declare how much the school could possibly hike tuition, in a worst case scenario.