By Robert O'Neill, Associated Press, 02/26/03

When is a fee a tax? Governor Mitt Romney has pledged not to increase taxes, but his proposed budget includes $60 million in new or increased fees. Romney says there’s a clear difference, but his critics say the distinction might be lost on the people who have to pay. A TAX is a charge imposed by a government on a product, good, or service for the primary purpose of raising public revenue. For example: • EXCISE TAX Such as property taxes, they are levied for the sole purpose of raising money for the state’s budget. •CIGARETTE TAX Although some of the money goes to antismoking programs, the bulk of the money is general revenue. A FEE is a charge for services received, to pay for government regulation or enforcement of an associated activity. If the income from the fee far exceeds the cost of regulation, then it is considered revenue and, therefore, a tax. For example: •LICENSING FEES Romney says his proposed license fees, such as those on motorcycles and firearms, are no higher than the state’s cost to regulate those activities. •BOTTLE DEPOSIT FEES Money from Romney’s proposal to impose deposits on bottles of uncarbonated beverages, wine, and liquor would be used to encourage recycling. 2004 fee proposals  RELATED GRAPHICS The governor's spending plan Tuition proposals  MORE INFORMATION From Mass.gov: Romney's 2004 budget proposals Press release on the budget Text of the State of the State  IN TODAY'S GLOBE Romney hit on local aid Governor looks to cut IG's office Raises at BRA irk other agencies Romney proposals on fees draw fire Schools take in new fiscal reality Proposal would tighten eligibility Town officials struggle to grasp cuts Families fear residents will lose care Video slots easing casino plans Lehigh: Bulger versus Romney  REALVIDEO [ NECN.com | Help with video ] State of the State address Video clips require RealPlayer and Windows 98 or higher.

BOSTON -- Calling the state's current higher education system a hodgepodge based more on politics than sound planning, the Romney administration Wednesday proposed a radical reorganization of Massachusetts' 29 public campuses and closing the office of University of Massachusetts President William M. Bulger.

The plan, presented as part of the fiscal 2004 budget, would spin off the flagship University of Massachusetts Amherst campus, privatize three other schools, including the state medical school, and merge six campuses in central and western Massachusetts.

Schools would be allowed to retain all their tuition and fees, instead of sending it into the state's general fund. The state would continue to provide aid for students in financial need.

Proposed tuition increases of up to 15 percent and $100 million in cuts through improved efficiency would help save the state $150 million, Romney said.

Eliminating Bulger's office would save $14 million, Romney said. But the governor, who criticized Bulger for failing to answer questions from a congressional panel investigating FBI ties to his brother, fugitive mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger, was quick to emphasize the move was motivated by policy and not politics.

"I want to note that the closing of the office was not a political calculation, nor a personal one," Romney said of Bulger -- a Democrat who spent half of his 34-year legislative career running the Senate as one of Massachusetts's most powerful politicians. "The same decision would have been reached regardless of the occupant."

Bulger spokesman Bill Wright said he had not seen specifics of the higher education plan but called it "far-fetched."

Legislative approval is necessary for the proposal to take effect.

While praising Bulger's leadership as "very effective," House Speaker Thomas Finneran said "all the governor's proposals are on the table. Everything has to be given a fresh and vigorous look."

Under Romney's proposal, the 59,000-student, five-campus system Bulger currently oversees would be dismantled, and replaced by seven regional systems to work more closely with the nine state colleges, 15 community colleges and local businesses. Current chancellors would become presidents of their campuses.

"If you look at the cut that would have to be taken in higher education and you didn't use some creative ways of creating a system, the fundamental foundation that we've grown over the years and invested in dearly would crumble," said Peter Nessen, Romney's top education adviser.

UMass-Amherst would be singled out for special treatment, Nessen said, allowing it to keep student charges without deducting them from the money it receives from the state.

"It needs to have the latitude that we would never be able to give in a public higher education system that's weaving other interests in," Nessen said. "There is a real desire to attract out-of-state, worldwide students to make it the world class institution that we want it to be."

The UMass Medical School in Worcester, The Massachusetts College of Art and Massachusetts Maritime Academy, would be allowed to raise their tuition to the market rate as state assistance is reduced over four years, but the state would continue to lease the three institutions their property for $1 a year.

Student tuition and fees would be increased between 5 percent and 15 percent for in-state residents, increasing overall fees for University of Massachusetts students from $5,586 to $6,424. According to the Romney administration that would still be below the average tuition charged to other students in the state. An increase of UMass-Amherst tuition had not yet been calculated.

The governor also proposed merging six schools: Berkshire Community College in Pittsfield and the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts in North Adams; Greenfield and Holyoke community colleges; and Mount Wachusett Community College in Gardner and Fitchburg State College.

The campuses would have one president and one board of trustees, Nessen said.

University officials were caught by surprise.

"We have no details at all so I can't really say what it might mean to the campus," said Berkshire Community College President Barbara Viniar.

"The mission is very different," she said of her two-year school and the state college 45 minutes away. "That's why geography is not always the best reason for these things. The danger is decisions are made by people who don't understand the local needs."

The plan would replace Bulger's 68-member office with a new Executive Office of Education that would have broad oversight duties.

But while Romney tried to play down any showdown with Bulger, the move made political sense, said Tobe Berkovitz, political analyst, professor of communication at Boston University.

"Mitt Romney is very good at picking the villains that he wants to run again," Berkovitz said. "An ultimate insider, patronage god ... Billy Bulger symbolizes the old guard that Romney ran to remove from government."

Romney wanted to get rid of Bulger and reorganize higher education, he said.

"It's essentially two goals that are very compatible," Berkovitz said.