The Florida Prepaid College Board has entered the ongoing lawsuit between the state Legislature and the Florida Board of Governors, siding with the Legislature.
The Board of Governors, the State University System's highest governing body, joined former U.S. Sen. Bob Graham's lawsuit against the Legislature in July to fight for tuition-setting power for the state's 11 public universities.
Florida Senate President Ken Pruitt, a Republican from Port St. Lucie, wrote in an e-mail that he was pleased with the prepaid board's decision.
"Thousands of parents and grandparents rely on the Florida Prepaid College program to ensure that their children and grandchildren can achieve the dream of higher education," Pruitt wrote. "Double-digit spikes to tuition shut the door of that dream to the students of today, and they also end that dream for the students of tomorrow," he added.
A judge ruled in January that the board did not show enough evidence to have standing in the case, and it filed an amended complaint on Monday.
Bill Edmonds, Board of Governors spokesman, said he wouldn't comment on whether the prepaid board's decision to join the tuition battle would affect the lawsuit's outcome.
