CSU faces more budget cuts

Fresno State could lose $12 Million in Schwarzenegger's budget proposal

By Rory Sa

Gov. Arnold Schwarzeneg-ger revealed his first budget Jan. 9, including a $771 million funding cut for the state university system.

Undergraduate fees will be raised by 10 percent, graduate student fees by 40 percent and non-resident fees an additional 20 percent.

“ My budget makes us live within our means,” Schwarzenegger said in his opening remarks on the budget. “That’s exactly what I promised during my campaign: that when I became governor of this state, I will not spend more money than the state takes in.”

The governor’s budget proposal depends on the passage of a $15 billion bond measure, proposition 57, in March’s primary election. Schwarzenegger has warned that further cuts will be necessary if the bond does not pass.

State Treasurer Phil Angelides, who toured Fresno State Tuesday as part of a statewide tour of state college campuses, disagreed with the governor’s cuts and with proposition 55.

“ What will build a stronger California economy will not be ‘economic recovery bonds’ they don’t do anything to help our economy recover,” Angelides said.

“ What will help us in the long term build our economy in California is making sure we have a budget that supports the University of California, California State University Fresno and the community colleges,” he said.

Officials said the system might be required to reduce enrollment by about 20,000 students, with Fresno State losing an estimated 1,500 students.

University President John Welty told faculty and staff members at the university’s spring assembly that Fresno State will lose $12 million in state funding.

Welty warned attendees that due to the severity of the cuts, he could not promise them that layoffs would not happen.

“ Things are budgeted so tightly right now that in order to deal with further reductions next year we have to start this spring, making decisions,” Welty said.

Welty asked faculty and staff to develop plans on how to deal with the potential cuts by Feb. 27. The University Budget committee will discuss and review these ideas, and begin implementing them in early April.

“ I recognize that the budget won’t be passed until sometime this summer, but we can’t wait knowing that it’s likely we’ll be faced with pretty severe reductions,” Welty said.

Part of the budget proposal would require a long-term fee policy. Increases would be tied to per-capita income growth, limiting increases for undergraduates to 10 percent annually.

“ Students aren’t faced with these dramatic fee increases every few years, but rather there’s a more gradual increase over time that everyone can plan for,” Welty said.

However, Welty said that this proposal would bring CSU fees in line with the higher fees found in other states.

“ We will need to move swiftly to help needy students as these fee increases are approved,” he said.

The budget would eliminate funding for outreach, Educational Opportunity Program funding and academic preparation programs from the state’s general fund. In December, the CSU system ordered campuses to reduce their student enrollment growth from 1 percent to 3.3 percent in order to preserve EOP and outreach funding cuts proposed earlier in the month by the governor’s office.

“ These have been very successful programs for students who otherwise may not have the opportunity to attend a CSU,” Chancellor Charles Reed said, in an e-mail to CSU employees.

Reed said the proposed budget will make it more difficult for the CSU system to deal with $57.4 million in required costs including $35.5 million for faculty compensation and health benefits and $15 million for insurance-related costs.

The proposed budget calls for eliminating funding for students who take more than 110 percent of the units needed for graduation. It also lowers the maximum family income for Cal Grant recipients by 10 percent.