That is unfair, and the inequity should be put in balance when the Legislature meets next winter.

Concurrent enrollment is a good way to let high school students earn college credit. It can reduce the time they spend in college once they get there, and that can benefit them and taxpayers, who share the expense of higher education. The less time it takes students to earn a degree, the less costly it is all around.

The Legislature now appropriates $8 million annually for the concurrent enrollment of high school students, who may take as many classes as they can manage and pay nothing beyond the enrollment fee. But some colleges say they meaning taxpayers and college students have to subsidize the high schoolers in college classes because the state does not foot all the bill.

Utah Valley State College administrators, for example, say they must bolster the state funding by $300,000 annually to pay costs such as administration and counseling.

This year, Gov. Jon Huntsman vetoed legislation that would have allowed colleges to charge concurrent enrollment students up to $30 per credit hour if the Legislature did not fully fund the program. Huntsman said the legislation was not needed, as lawmakers this year had already set aside an additional $2.3 million to offset higher-education costs.

But, if the program continues to grow at its current annual clip of 6-7 percent, colleges and universities could easily be stuck with unfunded increased costs. Providing a way for them to pass a small part of those costs on to high school students would ensure the program's survival even during lean budget years.

The maximum of $90 for a three-credit-hour class would still be a bargain, as college students pay nearly $650 in tuition for the same class.

With no way to charge even minimal tuition for concurrent enrollment, it's likely colleges would eventually have to reduce their course offerings to high school students, and that would be a loss, not only to them but to taxpayers, as well.