A state lawmaker has proposed a plan that would guarantee admission to any of Michigan's 15 public universities to students in the top 10 percent of their class at Michigan high schools.

The plan, modeled after Texas's decade-old 10-percent law, was introduced last week by State Rep. Rick Jones (R-Grand Ledge), who said the plan would ensure that students from rural farming communities or urban areas would have the same access to education as students from affluent suburbs.

Critics of the plan say it would infringe on the independence of Michigan's universities and force them to admit students who don't meet a college's academic standards.

Because Michigan's 15 public universities have autonomy under the state constitution, Jones said he plans to propose the admissions system as a constitutional amendment.

For the amendment to appear on the ballot this November, both houses of the Michigan Legislature must approve the measure by July to give voters the required three months to review the measure.

Jones said he hopes to introduce a draft of his plan to the legislature this week.

Percent-based admissions plans have often been discussed and implemented in states where affirmative action admissions policies have been struck down.

Since the ballot initiative Proposal 2 passed in Nov. 2006, race- and gender-based affirmative action has been banned in state institutions.

The Texas 10-percent law after which Jones is modeling his legislation was proposed there to circumvent a federal appeals court ruling banning the consideration of race in college admissions. California and Florida have followed suit with similar plans since Texas banned the practice in 1997.

Under California's Eligibility in Local Context plan, first used in 2001, the top 4 percent of high school seniors are guaranteed admission to any University of California campus. Under Florida's Talented 20 plan, passed in 2000, Florida high school students who graduate in the top 20 percent of their class are guaranteed admission to any of the 11 public universities within the Florida State University System.

Jones said he was concerned that Michigan's top schools have become too elitist by admitting out-of-state and international students over in-state students.

"I think an awful lot of people out there are trying to protect their kingdoms, saying, 'It won't work here,' " Jones said.

Jones said that if universities accept any form of state funding, including appropriations, their first priority should be educating Michigan residents. If universities aren't willing to abide by directives from the state government, he said, they should become private.

"Tax-funded universities should first be open to in-state students," Jones said.

Rep. Pam Byrnes (D- Chelsea), whose district includes North Campus, said she couldn't comment on Jones's proposal because she hasn't seen a draft. She said the idea behind the plan is admirable but that it seemed ill-suited for Michigan because the state's public colleges are not governed by one or two administrative systems as in the states where the percent plans have implemented.

She said the plan could "jeopardize some of the distinctions" between the schools that have very different missions and admissions standards.

Byrnes, who chairs the appropriations subcommittee for higher education, said her main priority is increasing funding to the state's universities. She questioned how many students would benefit from the plan, because many who graduate in the top 10 percent of their class will already be admitted to the state's universities.

"We need to be focusing on not just the top 10 percent, but the bottom 50 percent as well," she said.

Michael Boulus, executive director of The Presidents Council, State Universities of Michigan - a Lansing-based interest group that lobbies on behalf of Michigan's 15 public universities - said he opposes the proposal. He said it infringes on the schools' independence from the state and may force them to admit students who aren't prepared to meet the schools' academic standards.

"It's an affront to constitutional autonomy," he said. "There is no guarantee that the top 10 percent of every school is prepared to succeed at each and every one of our state schools."

Cynthia Wilbanks, the University's vice president for government relations, said she couldn't comment on the plan because a draft of the proposal hasn't been introduced yet, but said the University has had concerns in the past with similar proposals.