Herbert asks legislators for $1 billion

IU President Adam Herbert requested more than a billion dollars in operating appropriations for IU's eight campuses from the Indiana State Budget Committee in Indianapolis Wednesday. In addition, the president asked for $250 million in capital funds for building maintenance, upkeep and improvement in the University's bi-annual budget period that begins July 1, 2005. \nIU Director of Media Relations Larry MacIntrye said Herbert proposed a budgetary plan that includes all the University financial needs to protect current academic programs. \n"The request presented today represents 8 percent more money for the coming school year when compared to the current school year in terms of state support; 5 percent for year two of the plan. It's not that big of a jump," he said. "Herbert heard several lawmakers explain Indiana's financial situation is very tight; the state may not fully fund the request. The president's budget request is not loaded with candy; it's a real request. Herbert provided a plan and a starting point for the University and legislature to begin negotiations." \nFred Eichhorn, president of the IU board of trustees, said the University is in a constant struggle to finance the public institution. Eichhorn acknowledged the significant budget problems the state of Indiana faces, such as increasing financial responsibilities in Medicare and prison costs. He said the University does everything possible to help ease IU's burden on the state.\n"I give the state great credit for doing the best they can during times of financial difficulty," he said. "We try to conserve on our end. Unfortunately, when we get through the process and state funds are not adequate, we are faced with tuition issues. We look at our public support and the bare-bone needs of the University. We try to find out what we need to squeeze by. It's hard to make-up the difference in lost financial support. The last thing we want to do is raise tuition."\nMacIntrye said the University's billion-dollar request was not unusual or excessive, considering IU's current financial needs and legislative appropriations to the University in the last budget session. \n"This is the first step in keeping IU affordable and accessible to all students. In the next step, the state budgetary agency and the governor produce a budget -- probably after the election," MacIntrye said. "The committee on higher education also makes its recommendations, and a final budget is sent to the state legislature. We will not know until the final days of the legislative session in April, when the budget has to be passed."\nIn addition, MacIntrye said general routine campus maintenance costs the University about $20 million a year. However, he said the state has only allocated about $3 million in the past four years for this purpose; as a result, many maintenance projects have been postponed and building upkeep continues to fall behind.\n"So far IU has been lucky," MacIntrye said. "The University has made cuts in spending and tightened the belts without interfering with the excellence of our programs. IU has done a lot of things to reduce expenditures. Our major goal is to protect the quality of IU's academic programs. We are fortunate to have a lot of benefactors and contributors through the IU Foundation who have donated money to the University for buildings and equipment." \nEichhorn said the University and the legislature will contact each other continually as questions arise in the following months, since funding a public University is a state responsibility.\n"We understand the shortfalls in state revenues, although we would like to see the state fully fund our request," Eichhorn said. "Our request is tailored and tempered with regard to the fiscal realities of Indiana. IU is a very conservative in the money we spend. IU is dead last in the Big-Ten in per-pupil expenditures -- Purdue is next to last. Years ago, 60 percent of the state budget was given to Indiana's seven public universities. Currently, the state reserves about 30 percent of its budget to the universities." \nMacIntrye said Herbert and the University are concerned about preserving and protecting the quality of academic programs.\n"We do not want to increase tuition higher than inflation," he said. "We want to hold tuition down for a few years to give students and parents a breather. It is essential to the state of Indiana that we do that. In the last decade or two, state support has dropped for IU and the other 7 state universities. These cuts have been painful."\n-- Contact staff writer David A. Nosko at dnosko@indiana.edu.