UC budget crisis

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SF Chron Editorial on UC

Byuclafaculty

UC tuition no longer a bargain Sept. 14, 2011, San Francisco Chronicle Editorial Fed up with indecision and drift, the University of California is serving notice: Barring a miracle, tuition could nearly double over the next four years to more than $22,000. Don’t anyone miss the point: California’s finances and political priorities don’t favor higher education. That means the vaunted university system needs to fend for itself by asking students and their families to fill the gaps left by indifferent Sacramento. UC is at a tipping point… What’s under way is a shift in the university’s mission and character. It…

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Up, Up, and Away

Byuclafaculty

Under plan, UC tuition could rise by 16% a year Nanette Asimov, San Francisco Chronicle September 13, 2011 The University of California would raise student tuition by at least 8 percent – or as much as 16 percent – every year through 2016 under a plan that UC leaders will propose to the regents Thursday in San Francisco. Basic tuition could top $22,000 in just four years, not including other mandatory fees, books, room and board, if the regents adopt the idea at their November meeting as part of a multiyear budget plan. Undergraduate tuition is currently $12,192. UC officials…

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Settlement of Amazon War Could Lead to Budget Trigger

Byuclafaculty

You may have heard of the Amazon War regarding the state budget. Technically, when you buy on line, you owe sales tax to the state. But websites such as Amazon leave it to you to pay. And you don’t. As part of the recent state budget, an attempt was made to force Amazon and other sites to collect the tax due to the state. Amazon dumped a lot of money into an initiative campaign to reverse the budget deal on the sales tax. (There are some legal questions about such an initiative and in any case the legislature then tried…

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More on the state budget “trigger”

Byuclafaculty

As readers of this blog will know, the state budget for the current fiscal year contains a “trigger” for additional cuts – including UC – if revenue falls short of forecast levels. – – – September 6, 2011, Capitol Alert California Democrats getting nervous about trigger cuts Lagging tax revenues are making California officials nervous about “trigger” budget cuts to schools and services that appear likely unless more money flows into state coffers or the economic outlook improves. A newly amended Democratic bill would require the Department of Finance to give at least 10 days notice if it determines the…

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On the way to trigger

Byuclafaculty

The Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) released the following statement on its most recent projection of California state revenue. Translation: So far, it looks like the budget trigger will be pulled (which means more cuts for UC). Below is the text: Despite today’s weak national employment report for the month of August, preliminary reports from California’s tax agencies on personal and corporate income tax receipts for the month tell a “good news/bad news” story. On the one hand, the tax data indicates that the California economy is continuing to recover from the recession, albeit very sluggishly. This slow recovery is essentially…

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No More Books for Them at UC-San Diego?

Byuclafaculty

More Cheery Budget News: August 26, 2011 | Erica Perez | California Watch Driven by dramatic budget cuts that will shutter four campus libraries, staffers at UC San Diego are removing roughly 150,000 books and journals from their collections by summer’s end – selling volumes to the highest bidder or donating them. If UCSD students or researchers want to check out the selected writings of Benjamin Rush, they might have to request it through an interlibrary loan… Full story at: http://californiawatch.org/dailyreport/ucsd-library-cuts-mean-150000-books-must-go-12293 No more books for them?

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Golden Silence?

Byuclafaculty

Our colleagues at CSU and the community colleges feel the need to be outspoken about the impact of state budget cuts and possible upcoming “trigger” cuts to higher ed. Somehow, UC is not being quoted in the various news articles about this recent trend in public complaints. Is UC’s silence golden? Contrary to the headline on yesterday’s post on this blog, maybe more needs to be said. Example 1: Outgoing SF State President Slams Governor: Brown “doesn’t seem to appreciate high-quality education in California” Story at http://www.baycitizen.org/education/story/outgoing-sf-state-president-slams/ Example 2: California is witnessing a slow and steady decline of its prized…

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Yudof Announces Merit Pay Increase Plan

Byuclafaculty

President Yudof has issued a letter today indicating there will be merit-based pay raises for faculty “at all levels” of 3% and non-represented (nonunion) staff earning up to $200,000. It is unclear exactly what this means for faculty (who get step and promotion advances). The letter is at http://www.scribd.com/doc/62519367/Pres-Yudof-Letter-081711 A Sacramento Bee description of the letter and some background is at http://blogs.sacbee.com/capitolalertlatest/2011/08/university-of-california-employees-may-get-raises-mark-yudof.html Clearly, a golden future awaits: Update: There is a LA Times version of this story at http://www.latimes.com/health/la-me-uc-pay-20110818,0,298613.story But it does not make the matter any clearer. Update: The San Francisco Chronicle version tends to put a negative spin…

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LAO Report on June Budget Deal

Byuclafaculty

The Legislative Analyst’s Office has prepared a summary of last June’s budget deal. It includes an analysis of higher ed funding and all other major programs. Also described is the trigger mechanism that could lead to more cuts in the UC budget should forecast revenues not arrive as expected. You can find the report at: http://lao.ca.gov/reports/2011/bud/spend_plan/spend_plan_081211.aspx