Iowa universities warned state about impact of cuts

The Board of Regents months ago sent the state a summary of how potential cuts to its base funding — starting with a takeback of resources in the current budget year — could impact Iowa's public universities, warning of possible student aid cuts, employee furloughs and layoffs, program eliminations and tuition hikes.

In a document sent two weeks before Gov. Terry Branstad presented a $110 million statewide de-appropriation proposal, which aimed to hit the regents the hardest with a $25 million takeback, all three universities responded to rumors of the cuts by highlighting the broadest potential impact: reduced quality of education.

'Should the aforementioned reductions come to fruition, it will significantly impede the progress being made to meet the goals established in the strategic plan,' according to Iowa State University's portion of the Board of Regents fiscal impact statement provided Dec. 30 to the Iowa Department of Management.

Ben Hammes, a governor's office spokesman, said the Department of Management provided that document to Gov. Terry Branstad to help him craft his de-appropriations proposal, which he released Jan. 10. But the document was not distributed to legislators, who eventually approved a $117.8 million statewide de-appropriations that took back $18 million from the regents and $3 million from community colleges.

Broken down, the hit took $8 million from both University of Iowa and Iowa State, and $2 million from University of Northern Iowa. And campus administrators spent weeks scrambling to make the cuts, last week announcing plans to delay deferred maintenance, leave open vacant positions and cut already-promised student financial aid.

UI, specifically, announced it was ending several non-need and non-merit-based scholarship programs — affecting 2,440 students who expected to receive thousands in scholarship support in the next academic year and beyond.

That news drew ire among lawmakers, including Speaker of the House Rep. Linda Upmeyer, R-Clear Lake, who called the UI decision to end the scholarships 'politics at its worst.'

'It's very disappointing that the University of Iowa is choosing to play politics with scholarships and the lives of parents and students,' she said in the statement. 'In January, (Board of Regents) President (Bruce) Rastetter said that the regent universities would be able to make reductions, based on the governor's budget recommendation, with minimal impact on students.'

But before Rastetter's statement vowing to work to respond to the cuts 'in a way that has the least effect on students' was the Dec. 30 impact statement from the universities warning cuts to their funding base could force dramatic changes.

At Iowa State, that included possible layoffs, permanent furloughs, eliminated programs, tuition hikes for some students, and revised student financial aid packages. At UI, administrators warned that reduced state appropriations could harm academic programs, statewide services, and student financial aid. UNI's faculty and staff would feel the biggest impact, according to the document provided to The Gazette following a records request.

Rep. Pat Grassley, R-New Hartford, chairs the House's appropriations committee and said he wasn't provided the regents' document before the governor released his proposed de-appropriation. Still, citing Rastetter's comments after the governor's plan came out, Grassley called the UI decision to cut scholarships 'a little bit puzzling.'

As to whether he would have liked to see the regents' fiscal impact statement, Grassley said, 'any information is helpful.'

'But unless there was a way to increase state revenue in the current fiscal year, I am not sure how having this document would have significantly changed the steps taken,' he said. 'Reductions to any area of the budget aren't considered in a vacuum. They are weighed against every other area of the budget. That is why K-12 didn't receive any reductions. When revenues fall short of expectations, there are no easy decisions.'

On Friday, the state's Department of Management announced further cuts to entities it oversees — including community colleges and the Board of Regents, which again took the biggest hit of any department on the table.

On top of the regents $18 million cut, the second round of reductions took back $2.8 million — or $1.2 million from UI, nearly $1 million from Iowa State, and $522,500 from UNI. The community colleges lost another $1.8 million.

That brings the regents total loss to its state funding base to about $20.8 million and the community college losses to about $4.8 million.

For Cedar Rapids' Kirkwood Community College, the total hit is $746,500 — which, in the long term, will mean higher tuition and fewer programs for students, said Kirkwood spokesman Justin Hoehn.

'At this point we are evaluating the cuts and determining the impact on the short term,' he said.

Sen. Joe Bolkcom, D-Iowa City, also never saw the Board of Regents fiscal impact statement provided to the Department of Management. And, about the most recent cuts, said, 'It is unfortunate that underfunding of the public universities by the Governor and the Republican legislation continues.'

Although officials with Iowa's public universities haven't responded to questions about what the newest cuts might mean for their campuses, the Dec. 30 document lays out the potential impact of 3- to 5-percent cuts — or $15.4 million to $25.7 million — out of the university's general education budgets.

For the University of Iowa:

A 3 percent ($7.4 million), 4 percent ($9.9 million), or 5 percent ($12.4 million) permanent cut in state support would require UI to 'deploy a much stricter resource allocation prioritization process over the next year and beyond in order to implement its strategic plan successfully.'

Specifically, statewide services, academic programs, and student financial aid would be reduced. Tuition increases also would be needed to backfill the loss of state resources.

'In the absence of new resources — or increases in appropriations or tuition — the university will not be able to fully carry out its mission and fulfill its commitments to the people of Iowa, the nation, and the world,' according to the document.

For Iowa State University:

In response to cuts of between $7.1 million and $11.9 million, Iowa State would consider instituting a temporary layoff and furlough plan applicable to all ISU faculty and staff who are not grant-supported.

'Higher paid/more senior employees would be assigned more furloughed days,' according to the document.

ISU also would consider postponing non-essential deferred maintenance and repairs, delay filling vacancies and temporarily revise benefits.

The ISU impact statement also noted potential operating expense and service reductions — including delaying equipment purchases, cutting travel and professional development, reducing support for campus centers and institutes, and trimming custodial services.

'Should appropriations reductions extend beyond FY17 (establishing a new base), longer term strategies would have to be employed,' according to the ISU portion of the document. 'Examples of longer-term strategies could include, but not be limited to: making temporary FY17 measures permanent, program eliminations, layoffs, expanding differential tuition bases, and revising student financial aid packages.'

For the University of Northern Iowa:

Two associate provost positions are open and one has been permanently eliminated as part of budget reductions. The second position could remain unfilled this year, saving $200,000. The institution also could delay hiring a vice president of student affairs and other director positions, saving hundreds of thousands.

At the end of the last academic year and in the fall semester, according to the document, numerous faculty and staff retired or resigned — and searches are underway for 18 faculty and many other staff positions.

Savings from those salaries are being used to advance enrollment management and strategic initiatives but would be redirected toward the budget cut, according to the document.

l Comments: (319) 339-3158; vanessa.miller@thegazette.com

Reduction Submission (PDF) Reduction Submission (Text)