$42 million.

That's the amount the University of Minnesota would need in extra state funds to continue freezing tuition for undergraduate state residents, President Eric Kaler said Friday.

So depending on how legislators decide to split the $166 million that their leaders have agreed to set aside for higher education, he said there's a good chance tuition won't go up at the U, at least for Minnesota undergrads.

The U had asked for a bigger increase, in part to extend the tuition freeze to graduate students and to expand other programs. But Kaler reaffirmed Friday that his first priority is extending the undergraduate tuition freeze that began in 2013.

"If we get $42 million, there will not be a tuition increase for Minnesota resident undergraduates," he said Friday.

Officials at the Minnesota's other public college system, MnSCU, have also asked for funds to extend the tuition freeze at its seven state universities and 24 two-year colleges. A spokesman released a brief statement Friday, noting that the precise dollar amount slated for MnSCU won't be known until a legislative conference committee completes its work.

The tuition rates for this fall will be set this summer by the U Board of Regents and MnSCU's Board of Trustees.