BATON ROUGE – Louisiana is spending too much on college tuition through the TOPS program for students who can afford college while short-changing those who cannot, according to a new report.

The Taylor Opportunity Program for Students (TOPS) was examined in a report by the left-learning policy group Louisiana Budget Project. They recommended strengthening the program's academic requirements and placing a cap on the program.

The TOPS program spends about $139 million each year to pay full tuition to any university in the state schools for any Louisiana resident, regardless of income, who finishes their high school career with a grade-point average of 2.5 or higher and scores a 20 or above on the ACT college aptitude test.

According to the new report, Louisiana standards are lower than similar programs in other states, and the result has been millions of tax dollars subsidizing mediocre students from wealthy families who can and would pay for their children's education if TOPS weren't available.