May 22, 2009
UNC President
Erskine Bowles' comments on the preliminary 2009-2011 budget recommendations
made by the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Education
Note: The creation
of the state's budget for fiscal 2009-2011 is a multi-step process. You will
recall from earlier communications that Governor Beverly Perdue and the N.C.
Senate have already proposed budgets. The N.C. House is working on its
version of the budget now.
The House Appropriations
Subcommittee on Education is one of a number of subcommittees that will make
budget recommendations to the full House Appropriations Committee. After the
recommendations are submitted to the House Appropriations Committee, the
full committee has the opportunity to amend the proposed budget prior to it
going to the floor of the House for a vote.
Once the House has approved
its version of the budget, it will go the Senate for approval. It is
anticipated that the Senate will reject the House version of the budget, and
that conferees from both the House and the Senate will be appointed to a
Conference Committee to construct the final budget. Both the House and
Senate will vote on the final budget, which then goes to the Governor for
approval or veto. -- Merianne Epstein, UNC Asheville News Services
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From the
Office of the President
UNC President Erskine
Bowles today (May 21, 2009) released the following statement on the
preliminary 2009-11 state budget released today by the House Appropriations
Subcommittee on Education:
We understand completely
the severity of this recession and the extremely difficult choices the House
is being forced to make to balance the State budget. North Carolina is no
different than every other state in the union. While we are grateful that
the proposed budget cuts are less than those in other states like Florida,
there should be no question in anyone's mind that the $337 million reduction
in state funding proposed for our public universities would have a severe
and lasting negative impact on student access and the quality of education
our universities can offer our students.
-
ACCESS: Student
access to a public college education would be severely restricted in
North Carolina. In addition to increasing tuition for every UNC student
by $256 (10.3% on average)—thereby pricing higher education out of the
reach of many North Carolina families—the draft House budget would also
reduce funding for need-based aid available to North Carolina families
by over $24 million. As a result, we would be unable to provide aid for
over 9,700 eligible students. Inadequate need-based aid would not be the
only added barrier to a UNC education. The draft House budget also
proposes to cap our 2010-11 enrollment at current levels, resulting in
thousands of North Carolina students from every walk of life being
denied admission to a UNC campus.
-
QUALITY: The
net funding reduction of $337 million proposed by the House equates to
an 11.1% budget cut. If cuts of that magnitude are implemented, students
on every UNC campus can expect to see 1) larger classes; 2) less student
advising and counseling; 3) higher faculty/student ratios; 4) lower
retention and graduation rates; 5) delayed classroom upgrades and
laboratory renovations; 6) fewer security personnel; 7) reductions in
library services; and 8) reductions in maintenance.
-
STIMULUS: House
fiscal staff have indicated that any federal stabilization funds applied
to the proposed education budget would simply be used to offset state
funding, which is completely contrary to the whole purpose of the
President's stimulus package aimed at preserving educational access and
quality. In fact, the federal legislation requires that states use the
funds "in such a way as to mitigate the need to raise tuition and fees
for in-state students.”
