Gov. Gray Davis released his proposal for the state budget for fiscal year 2002-03 last Thursday. Davis’ proposed budget, while still making expected cuts due to California’s estimated $12 billion shortfall, would fund 7,100 full-time students university-wide without an increase in mandatory student fees.
Since his gubernatorial campaign in 1998, Davis has vowed to make public education his first priority.
“”We appreciate the governor’s effort to maintain support for higher education during such difficult economic times,”” said UC President Richard C. Atkinson.
Margaret F. Pryatel, assistant vice chancellor of resource management, said she is satisfied with the appropriations made to the University of California during the economic slump and believes that the finalized budget will more or less reflect Davis’ commitment to education.
“”For being in the economic situation we are currently in, it is a good budget in that sense,”” Pryatel said. “”Quite frankly, I believe that the governor did the best that he could in this situation.””
Last October, Davis issued executive orders requiring state agencies to freeze the hiring of new employees to compensate for the expected economic downturn. While the University of California is not a state agency, university officials were well aware that reductions in spending would be made and heeded the governor’s advice. The University of California also prepared scenarios for spending cuts of up to 15 percent, as did all state agencies.
“”When the university had anticipated cuts [UC Vice President of Budget Lawrence C. Hershman] had hoped that specific cuts would be made, not just across our core budget, but to specific areas,”” Pryatel said.
One specific cut made to the UC budget was to the university’s K-12 outreach program, which would see a $4.2 million decrease under Davis’ proposal. UCSD’s charter program, The Preuss School, would undergo an anticipated $422,000 in cuts.
Davis has, however, kept mandatory student fees level. The proposal would make 2002-03 the eighth consecutive year without a systemwide fee increase.
However, $17 million of “”bonus”” funding for financial aid will be slashed. These bonus fees are monies that the state had allowed the university to keep when fee reductions of 5 percent were made in 1998-99 and 1999-2000. UC students are projected to receive $500 million in scholarships, grants and fellowships in the next year from both public and private sources.
University officials are concerned with the state’s ability to maintain its end of the Partnership Agreement, a pact between the University of California and the state of California to continue its improvement toward growth and excellence.
“”The partnership is an agreement by the state and the university where enrollment growth will be funded, to a certain level, by the state,”” Pryatel said. “”In the last two years, the budget we have gotten has not fulfilled the partnership.””
Because the University of California could not collect on the funds promised in the partnership, it could not fund an additional 2 percent raise to staff and faculty. UC officials are placing this as their top priority if any additional funding is allocated to the university before the budget is finalized.
“”Our faculty and staff are the heart of the university, and competitive compensation for them remains a high priority for UC,”” Atkinson said. “”We will continue to seek additional salary funds as the state’s finances allow.””
Under the governor’s proposed plan for 2002-03, the University of California would receive $3.4 billion in funding from the state, an estimated $250 million less than what was received by the university during the 2001-02 fiscal year.
To meet these funding allocations, the budget plan calls for a series of three education bond measures on the 2002, 2004 and 2006 ballots. The proposal also provides the final two years of funding for the UC-based California Institute of Science and Innovation, which includes the Institute of Telecommunications and Information Technology that is to be housed in UCSD’s Earl Warren College. Funding for the Institutes of Science and Innovation is made possible via lease-revenue bonds.
The proposal will now make its way through the legislative budget analyst’s office before going before the state legislature. The finalized budget will be signed in by June 30.
