A group of students is asking an Alameda County judge to bar California State University campuses from charging higher fees for summer and winter classes.

The four students, including one from Cal State East Bay, filed the petition Tuesday in Alameda County Superior Court. According to the filing, the university broke state law when it started charging students substantially more for classes historically subsidized by the state.

Summer courses are required by law to cost the same as those during the more traditional spring and fall terms, said Anne Arkush, the San Francisco attorney who is representing the students. The winter session generally falls between the two terms; this year, winter courses were offered Jan. 4 to March 14.

"State law is very clear," she said. "But the university seems to be ignoring that."

The university, however, can charge the higher prices because many of this summer's classes will be offered through extended-education programs, not through the central campus, said Rodney Rideau, the systemwide budget director. The difference, he said, means that the summer classes are not equivalent to those offered during the fall and spring terms.

The 430,000-student university has endured severe budget cuts the past two years, forcing it to cut enrollment and take other dramatic steps to balance its finances. Chancellor Charles Reed in January directed campuses to