UNI president says tough long-term budget decisions await

Academic and nonacademic programs probably won't be cut this year at the University of Northern Iowa to help cover a budget deficit, but the university must make hard choices in the coming years as state funding makes up less of the budget, President Ben Allen said Tuesday.

A $5 million budget deficit this year -- the result of state cuts and lower-than-expected fall enrollment of full-time students -- will be covered mostly through leaving positions unfilled and cutting jobs by shuffling employees, Allen said after a campus forum about the budget Tuesday. But UNI's heavy reliance on state funding and tuition from in-state students means years of state budget cuts have taken a toll and will continue to be a problem unless programs are trimmed, he said.

Stabilizing the budget will require big changes, not just "nipping at the edges all the time," Allen said. He expects those discussions will have to happen soon, to prepare the university as soon as fiscal year 2013, which begins next July 1, and the following fiscal year.

"I still think we need to trim some nonacademic programs and academic programs and focus our resources" on areas of excellence and strength, he said.

From fiscal year 2009 to the current fiscal year, state appropriations to UNI declined from $98.3 million to $74.7 million, Allen said. That translates to a decline from $7,615 in state money per student to $5,673 per student, he said.

State funding cuts have more of an impact on UNI than at the University of Iowa and Iowa State University because those schools can rely more on out-of-state students -- who pay much more in tuition -- to make up for cuts. But UNI's student population is 92 percent Iowa students, making that out-of-state "spigot" unavailable, Allen said.

UNI is asking for a special state appropriation of $4 million for next year, in addition to a $3 million increase to the regular general education money the university gets from the state. University officials are considering several scenarios for Fiscal 2013, including what would happen if UNI doesn't get its special request of $4 million and takes a 5 percent budget cut to general ed funds. That would lead to a nearly $7 million deficit next year, Allen said. The best scenario officials are planning for, getting the special appropriation of $4 million and not having cuts to the general fund dollars, would lead to a $800,000 surplus, he said.

"Longer term is where we have to focus," Allen said. "Just thinking for FY 13 is probably not deep enough."

Of the $5 million deficit in the current year, Allen and other UNI officials last spring were expecting $3.6 million of that due to state funding losses. But fall enrollment didn't quite hit projections, Allen said, so this year's deficit ended up at $5 million. That is being covered mostly through leaving open jobs unfilled and shuffling employees around to cut positions, Allen said. Some money also was set aside as contingency money last year, and divisions have reduced travel, supplies and services, he said.

About 125 people attended the campus forum Tuesday, though only two people asked questions of Allen after his presentation. They asked about being better advocates to the Legislature and for tips on how to reverse the trend of state funding declines.

Kathy Green, director of University Health Services, attended the forum and said afterward her division has done a good job of keeping people informed about the budget. Her division has tightened its belt and left some open jobs unfilled, she said.

"We also had to increase our student fees, the recreation fee and the health fee, so they've absorbed part of it, too," Green said. "I think we're trying to be optimistic that things will turn around."