Outlook dim for new buildings

Jennifer Knight

Monday, April 22, 2002 | 8:58 a.m.

If you don't ask, you don't receive, and University and Community College System of Nevada officials are asking for $1.8 billion in state funding from the governor and Legislature, despite a bad financial outlook.

Capital improvements before the Board of Regents on Friday topped $531.4 million in requests, with $364 million to come from state coffers.

A minimum of $1.06 billion in operating funds are needed to keep the lights on and doors open at Nevada's eight institutions, but with the capital requests, higher education's request for state money comes to $1.43 billion.

"What we need is to come up with the minimum funding amount needed before we are unable to provide services to students," Chancellor Jane Nichols said.

Looming over everyone's head is Gov. Kenny Guinn's announcement last week that the state has a $55 million deficit this year and is expected to have another $115 million more in projected shortfalls next year.

Given that outlook, money for capital improvements looks like a dim prospect, Ashok Dhingra, University of Nevada, Reno vice president for administration and finance, said.

"When there's no government surplus, capital improvements are less likely," Dhingra said after the board meeting in Henderson Friday. "In past years we have had good luck with getting capital improvements funded when there was a surplus."