The Rivers Casino will pay $7.5 million a year toward construction of the new Penguins arena.

The city-county Sports & Exhibition Authority, which is building the $325 million Consol Energy Center, said Monday that the casino will make two payments a year for the next 30 years.

A licensing condition requires the casino to help fund the arena. Holdings Acquisition, which owns the casino, made a $2.3 million payment last month after the state Gaming Control Board threatened sanctions.

The casino's owners, who rescued the stalled project from possible bankruptcy last year, had said they believed the first payment wasn't due until at least next year.

The arena is scheduled to open for the 2010-2011 season.

Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl will propose a 1 percent tax on tuition at colleges and universities in the city as part of the city's operating budget.Ravenstahl was scheduled to introduce his $452 million proposed budget to city council on Monday.The proposed college education privilege tax would be paid by students who attend post-secondary schools in the city, including colleges, universities, art, business and culinary schools. Ravenstahl says those students use city services.