BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - Thousands of Louisiana's college students face a surprising change as they start courses this month and pay their registration bills: Their costs for attending class aren't rising.

  

For years, many students across Louisiana's public university campuses faced repeated tuition hikes, and more recently, regular fee increases.

  

But none of the state's four college systems has enacted such mandatory, system-wide increases for upcoming fall semester classes.

  

The decision not to raise fees comes after Gov. John Bel Edwards and lawmakers boosted state spending on higher education by $47 million in the $30 billion-plus state operating budget that started July 1.

  

Nearly one-third of the increase ensures TOPS covers full tuition for all eligible students. More than $9 million will help campuses pay for some of their growing health and retirement costs.