Utah lawmakers are barreling ahead with their plan to cut the budget for the state’s public colleges and universities.
On Thursday — the third day of the legislative session — they delineated just how much they’re looking for each school to trim.
The move comes as part of two bills: The first is HB1, the base budget for higher education, where $60.5 million total could be cut across the board for public higher education. The second is HB265, which would move that money into a line item called “strategic reinvestment.”
Schools could petition for their share of the money back after showing that it will be reallocated for high-demand and high-wage programs that state legislators want to see being taught.
“Your vision for reallocation and reinvestment actually really aligns with our vision,” said Amanda Covington, chair of the Utah Board of Higher Education, during the discussion.
Both measures are sponsored by Rep. Karen Peterson, R-Clinton, who chairs the Higher Education Appropriations Subcommittee.
The money for the cuts will come out of the funds designated for instruction that are appropriated by the Legislature to each school, based on a formula that takes into account the size of the institution, the level of classes taught (undergraduate, graduate, etc.) and research. It’s a 10% trim on that line item.
As such, the University of Utah would see the largest cut, with the reduction there making up one-third of the total across the eight public institutions.
Utah State University and the U., combined, account for half of the reallocated funds.
Here’s a breakdown of what each school is set to see slashed:
• University of Utah: $19.6 million
• Utah State University: $12.6 million
• Utah Valley University: $8.9 million
• Weber State University: $6.7 million
• Salt Lake Community College: $5.2 million
• Southern Utah University: $3.2 million
• Utah Tech University: $2.6 million
• Snow College: $1.7 million
There will be a three-year time period for schools to make the budget adjustments, with one-year backfills each year until then, according to the commissioner over higher education. That would also allow schools to “teach out” any programs that could be cut, meaning students who are currently enrolled in them will be able to finish their degrees.
