State funding for the UW law school could be eliminated if the Republican Assembly’s version of the budget is passed. The budget would raise tuition for law students several thousand dollars over the next two years.

Rep. Frank Lasee actively pushed for the cut to be added to the budget as a way to cut back on state expenses and the number of lawyers in the state.

“It’s a bargain,” Lasee said. “Why should we be subsidizing a bargain?”

He said even with the increased tuition, students looking to save money on law school would still go to the UW law school, rather than out of state because it would still be cheaper than going elsewhere.

“Financially, they would still go there and still be the second (lowest) in the big 10,” Lasee explained.

Lasee said he first started thinking about the cut to the law school after observing a shortage of dentists in the state. He said he would rather have our brightest minds heading into other fields than law, which he said is certainly at no shortage.

According to the American Bar Association, however, there are about 14,500 lawyers in Wisconsin while the average state has more 22,000.

If the measure goes through, the school will receive $1 million less funding this year and tuition would increase around $1,300. Next year an additional $2.5 million would be cut and tuition would increase around $2,700. Eventually all state funding would be cut by 2010.

UW Law School Assistant Dean Carolyn Butler said it’s more of an “access question.”

If the state funding was cut, “it would really hurt people who are not wealthy enough,” Butler said. “People who are wealthy could still attend law school, but people who are not would find it really difficult.”

Professor Marc Ethridge, chair of the UWM political science department said a substantial increase in law school tuition could affect students’ decision to go on.

When Ethridge asked his capstone political science class how many students were planning to attend law school after graduation, he said majority of the students in the 50-some-person class raised their hand.

Andrew Pease, a journalism graduate student, is planning on attending law school next year, most likely in Madison. While he said cost was one of the factors in looking at Madison, the proposed increase wouldn’t stop him from going there.

“I would still apply there because compared to the other universities I’m looking at, it’s still a good deal if it’s in-state,” Pease said.

Besides the UW law school, Pease has also applied at Harvard, Berkeley, and Lewis and Clark.

“When you’re looking at law school, everyone is going to be in debt by the end of it,” Pease said.

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