Higher ed budget struggles in Salem
oy ANN KURT AL
Of the EmaraM
To understand what’s
happening to the higher educa
tion budget, remember one
thing — what you see is not
necessarily what you get
Although the state Ways and
Means Committee approved a
$1 billion 1981-83 higher
education budget June 12, it
has not forwarded the budget to
the House And until the budget
is sent on, Ways and Means still
can cut, add to or amend its
proposal
The $1 billion budget is a
pessimistic estimate, including
the 10-percent reduction that
would be necessary if Gov
Atiyen s revenue package does
not pass The budget includes
$381.5 million in state general
fund support — a $25 3 million
increase over the 1979-81 bud
get — $173.7 million in federal
support and $460 9 million in
other support, such as fees
The committee recommenda
tion should not be considered a
final decision on the level of
funding for the next two years,
says Paul Civin, vice provost in
charge of fiscal affairs
Instead, onlookers should
realize that the Ways and Means
budget is just part of a "very
different from normal" political
process that the Legislature has
adopted this session, he says
The main intent of the Ways
and Means budget is to identify
the priority of 22 cuts proposed
by the committee, Civin says. All
22 items would be eliminated
from the higher education sys
tem budget if the governor s
revenue package is defeated
However, Ways and Means
isn’t saying where the dividing
line should fall on the list of 22
cuts — that's largely up to the
Revenue Committee, which is
expected to discuss at meetings
this week how much of the
10-percent cut in the governor’s
budget it is willing to restore
Ways and Means has listed
the 22 cuts in ascending order
of priority. Cut number one
would eliminate a $434,332
revenue increase for Continu
Tuition due to rise this fall
Two things in life are certain — death and
taxes Students now can count on a third certainty
— tuition increases
To offset the higner education budget crisis,
the state Ways and Means Committee has
recommended an 18-percent tuition hike each of
the next two years for resident undergraduate
students Tuition tor the 1981-82 school year
would increase from $693 to $819, not including
building, health center and incidental fees
Allowing a 15 percent inflationary increase in
the cost of room and board, books and personal
items, the total undergraduate cost-of-education
would increase from $3939 to $4510 Costs would
rise again during the 1982-83 school year to
$520£
However, the Ways and Means Committee
ca-not raise tuition, it only can advise the state
higher education board, which has the legal
authority to set tuition
But the higher education budget approved by
Ways and Means is based on an 18-percent
tuition increase, and a footnote at*ached to the
Ways and Means Education suDCommittee's
report clearly states the committee expects an
increase
Ways and Means also recommended other
tuition increases, including a resident graduate
tuition increase of 18 percent each of the next two
years, a nonresident undergraduate tuition in
crease of 17 percent for 1981-82 and 7 percent for
1982-83, and medical, dental and veterinary
tuition increases of 25 percent
Graphic by Max DeRungs
Keith Jackson, higher education board
assistant budget director, says the board is wait
ing for the Legislature to make the budget final,
but tuition levels may be set by the end of the
month
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ing Education overhead, while
cut number 22 would lop a
whopping $5 million from
program expenditures.
Civin says he doubts Ways
and Means will change the
order of priorities In effect, he
says, the committee is telling
Revenue, “Here it is, we won't
pass it out, but we would like it in
this order ”
The priority list clearly iden
tifies the amount of revenue
measures that must be
approved in order to save each
item. Civin says that there is a
"high likelihood" that at least
items number one through
number 14 will be eliminated,
meaning an additional
3-percent cut of $109,000 will
be added on to the 3.5 percent
previously eliminated from the
budget by the University
Provost Richard Hill said at a
special faculty meeting on June
10 that the University “can re
spond to this additional three
percent with pain, but without a
serious reduction in programs."
The 3-percent cut could be
met "with careful planning and
not filling some positions,”
University Pres. Paul Olum said
at the same meeting But
beyond that level, "we’re in real
trouble ’’
Olum said that if the Legisla
ture doesn’t fund items number
21 — $2.5 million for staff and
enrollment support — and
number 22, there would be
"nothing normal we could do to
make it” and that he would
recommend the closure of
departments and schools rather
than a weakening of all areas
Civin says he only can guess
when the verdict will be in for
higher education. After the
Legislature ends in late July or
early August, the state higher
education board still must meet
to decide how it will cope with
the final budget, which may take
until late August or early Sep
tember, he says.
"We may not know the full
details of fall operation until
school is starting,” Civin says.
HOW TO BUY
MONEY
COME TO THE SMITH FAMILY
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Chances are you will find most of your books at
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BRING THE TITLE AND
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It might take some time to find your books, but
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RETURN BOOKS YOU DO NOT
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If you buy the wrong books or drop a class, you
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SELL YOUR OLD TEXTBOOKS.
After you buy your textbooks, bring in your old
books and the Smith Family Bookstore will buy
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SMITH FAMILY
bookstore
768 East 13th-Upstalrs in the Smith
Building, Next to the Excelsior. Eugene,
Oregon 97401 345-1651.