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DES MOINES, IOWA (AP) -- For some Iowa parents, the state's push for public preschool will come at a high cost.

Districts statewide will be charging tuition for 4-year-old students this fall, and some schools are charging more than $100 a
month. The charges come despite nearly $65 million in taxpayer funding for public preschool.

Critics say parents shouldn't be footing the bill for something the state has promised to pay for.

Gov. Chet Culver, a former teacher, signed a multimillion-dollar package of legislation in 2007 that was intended to make preschool available to most 4-year-olds in Iowa.

Under the legislation, participation is voluntary, and parents aren't required to send children to preschool.

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