It's not often that powerful people give themselves a tongue-lashing, but that's just what happened last week.

A dozen legislators from various states wrote that public higher education is suffering from neglect and dressed down themselves and fellow lawmakers for allowing problems to take root.

Their diagnosis: Too few Americans, especially from poor families, go to college. Too few students graduate. And too few taxpayers understand why good public colleges give economic development a big boost.

But the lawmakers were especially flinty about two of the biggest sins of public higher education over the last 15 years – extravagant tuition increases and stagnant financial aid – areas over which legislators have a lot of responsibility.

"Tuition and fees are increasing rapidly, and the quality of the educational experience is not keeping pace," the lawmakers wrote in a report issued by the National Conference of State Legislatures.

"We let too many students fall through the cracks. Nationally, for every 100 ninth-graders who enter high school, only 18 finish college within six years. These results simply are not good enough."

Then there's this: "Government's primary responsibility in higher education is to guarantee post-secondary education and/or training to all citizens. Yet, when we cut financial support to higher education, we deny access to our most needy students. We are in danger of creating a permanent underclass. The poorest individuals have only an 8 percent chance of obtaining a college degree compared to a 70 percent chance for the wealthiest individuals."

This is from legislators, people with power to decide whether state institutions wither or thrive. They sound scared. You can almost hear them saying India's going to eat our lunch if we don't act aggressively and fast.

Legislators know colleges have other sources of revenue. When state funding flags, colleges can raise tuition. Some lawmakers even talk about the importance of charging customers for the benefits of a college education.

But consider what has happened in Texas over the last decade.

In 1993-94, the state provided 51 percent of the operating revenue for Texas universities. Twelve percent came from the federal government, 23 percent from internal sources, like private gifts, and 14 percent from tuition and fees, according to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.

In 2004-05, the figures were 36 percent from the state, 14 percent from Washington, 24 percent from internal sources and 26 percent from students and parents. The dollar amount provided by the state has grown, but the total paid by families has grown even more.

That's a big shift in a short time for families. Tuition deregulation has played a large role. Since 2003, when the Legislature let universities start setting their own tuition rates, the statewide average for tuition and fees has risen 37 percent, with no adjustment for inflation.

I know public colleges can trim some fat. Their fitness centers sometimes look like they belong in fancy spas. And you can always find a professor who has devoted years to researching the sex life of fleas.

But years of austerity do have an effect. Higher education is very competitive. Public colleges have to compete with well-heeled private schools for top faculty and students. Luring good professors and providing a top education is expensive, especially in the sciences. Shouldn't the public universities – which educate a half-million Texans – be able to compete?

Last week's report, which includes Texas state Rep. Geanie W. Morrison among its authors, is timely.

Many legislatures convene in January, and lawmakers are busy now pre-filing bills. Solutions to many problems cited in the report boil down to money. Keeping public college tuition low while maintaining quality requires a commitment of will. It also requires a commitment of state dollars.

Plus, the report comes a few months after the U.S. Department of Education issued a paper that criticized higher education and vowed to make colleges more accessible, more affordable and more accountable.

The legislators who wrote last week's report ask whether states really want to abdicate responsibility for reform to the federal government.

The primary audience they wanted to reach, they added, was other lawmakers.

"Commission members believe that legislators have played a role in creating the crisis in higher education," they wrote. "Specifically, legislators have not made strategic budget and appropriations decisions, have not set clear statewide goals for higher education, and have not exerted strong leadership on higher education issues."

Austin, do they have your ear?