U of M budget cut concerns

University of Minnesota President Robert Bruininks does not expect the university to be held harmless when it comes to solving the state’s multi-billion dollar biennial budget shortfall, but he warned legislators that deep cuts are going to affect the state’s long-term quality.

“My primary message is that we want the university’s future to be in the center of your deliberations,” he told the House Higher Education Policy and Finance Committee Feb. 22. “We need you to pay attention to these issues not only in terms of cuts to balance the state’s budget in the short-term, but also in regards to Minnesota’s long-term economic vitality.”

No action was taken.

In his budget proposal, Gov. Mark Dayton said higher education is a top priority of his administration, yet he recommends a 6 percent base budget reduction for the university.

Chief Financial Officer Richard Pfutzenreuter noted state appropriations to the university in fiscal year 2010 were about equal to that of eight years earlier.

“State support is essential to generating the new ideas and the external resources that fuel thousands of private-sector jobs in Minnesota each year,” Bruininks said.

University officials have, at the committee’s request, begun looking at what 15 percent and 20 percent reductions in state dollars would mean.

“The president’s modeling, based on what we’re doing today, is that we’re likely to approach that problem in a two-thirds/one-third distribution, with two-thirds coming in the form of internal budget cuts and about a third coming from tuition revenue,” Pfutzenreuter said.

Bruininks said that “this university will turn over every possible rock” to make sure any tuition increase is no higher than need be.

Solving a state funding reduction of

15 percent to 20 percent purely by tuition increases would mean a 13 percent to

17 percent increase. “That would jeopardize the future of countless university students. We don’t plan to do that,” Bruininks said. If it was made simply by layoffs, it would add 1,700 people to the state’s unemployed.

“For several years now, we have warned of a future tipping point in which we would no longer be able to sustain deep cuts, and remain the university our state expects and our state deserves,” Bruininks said. “I think that tipping point has arrived or is very close.”