McRobbie requests 4.2 percent state budget increase

IU President Michael McRobbie presented a request for a 4.2 percent increase in the 2011-13 state budget at a State Budget Committee meeting Wednesday.

Two Republican members, two Democratic members and the state budget director make up the committee, IU spokesman Larry MacIntyre said. The committee makes recommendations on the proposed two-year budget to the governor, MacIntyre said, after having hearings with state agencies and state universities about their
individual needs.

“It’s just routine,” MacIntyre said. “Just part of the budget process. So what they wanted was to hear from President McRobbie the rationale for our budget request.”

President Pro Tempore of the Bloomington Faculty Council Erika Dowell said she would be surprised if the University receives the increase that McRobbie asked for from the state legislature.

“It’s based on solid data and is a reasonable request,” she said. “Between the economy and the Republican takeover of the legislature, I don’t think increases
are likely.”

The request is driven by a formula, which takes enrollment and other factors into consideration when adding together University costs. Under the formula, the University is not asking for any more money than necessary, MacIntyre said.

“State money is used basically for operations,” he said. “Most of the money we get from the state helps pay faculty and reduces the tuition cost for in-state students.”

The money does not aid out-of-state tuition because tax dollars from Indiana residents are used to subsidize the tuition for Indiana students, MacIntyre said.

While McRobbie has requested the 4.2 percent increase, MacIntyre said IU’s operating cost has already been reduced by $100 million.

“The president and (Neil) Theobald are still looking at other ways to become more efficient, which often involves reducing costs,” he said. “And they’re looking for ways to do it without being harmful to the University operations.”

One way the costs have been reduced is employee reduction under a program that states when two employees in a department leave, the department can only replace one of them, MacIntyre said.

This way, he said, the University does not have to lay off faculty or staff members to save money.

— Bailey Loosemore