$10 million less sought for new state college

Erin Neff

Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2003 | 11:04 a.m.

The Nevada State College at Henderson was viewed as a questionable big-ticket item from the time it was first proposed.

And now with the state facing a $704 million deficit, the new college's bid for even more state money is the kind of request that will call into question what programs are fueling the need for what could be $1 billion in increased taxes.

Assembly Speaker Richard Perkins, D-Henderson, one of the school's biggest supporters, called on Gov. Kenny Guinn to cut $10 million -- nearly 60 percent -- of the college's requested budget in an effort to save the school and some political face.

"Although this is a significant cut, it doesn't suggest a change of heart," Perkins said. "I still support the concept of the state college.

"But I cannot with a clear conscience look at $704 million state shortfall, the possibility of reductions in other programs and the possibilities of taxing big business without also looking at the state college."

The University and Community College System of Nevada had requested $16.9 million in funding for the state college over the next biennium.

Perkins has asked Guinn to cut that request to $6.9 million.

Guinn said Tuesday that he welcomed the cost-savings input from the state Legislature's top Democrat.

"I really appreciate the effort that (Perkins) and (state university system chancellor) Jane Nichols have put into this," Guinn said. "I think it's a solution that keeps the college in place."

Guinn said the allocation would not allow the college to grow in any way, but it would simply keep the college alive with the potential for future growth.

In an interview earlier this week, Nevada State College President Kerry Romesburg said he was nervous about the 2003 Legislature.

"I would be incredibly naive if I didn't view the upcoming Legislature with trepidation," said Romesburg, who was formerly president of Utah Valley State College in Orem. "The fact that we are not only a start-up, but also operating at a very inefficient mode while we are so small, makes us a target."

Contacted Tuesday afternoon by the Sun about the proposed cut, Romesburg was incredulous.

"Holy smokes," he stammered. "My goodness. I'm hesitant to respond to this because this is news to me and that (number -- $6.9 million -- is) pretty small."

Romesburg declined additional comment until he sees Guinn's budget.

Nichols said the proposed cut, which will essentially put the start-up college on hold, could actually be beneficial.

"We of course, like most new colleges do, did not have a year or two of planning," Nichols said. "There was no planning year funded by the Legislature."

Without the university system's requested money, she said, the college will "slow down."

"It will allow the new president to build enrollment, but he won't be under pressure," Nichols said. "Once the new building is finished, which should be at the end of the next biennium (2005), the college will clearly be a draw."

Nichols said the pressures on Romesburg will actually diminish in the coming years.

"It was inevitable with a start-up program, that we looked to cuts and slowing it down," Nichols said.

Perkins championed the project from the outset, and despite questions about the need for such a college and the controversy surrounding its founding president, Richard Moore, Perkins fought for funding. After an independent report cited the efficacy of a school that would serve as an alternative to stricter admissions standards at University of Nevada, Las Vegas and train future teachers and nurses, Guinn included funding for it in his 2001 budget.

It is doubtful state lawmakers will restore funding to the state college at the level the university requested. Nichols said she is not expected any restoration of funds.

During the 2001 session, numerous lawmakers, including Democrats, questioned the need for the school.

Since that time, the state college was among items discussed by Republican lawmakers, most notably Assemblyman Bob Beers, R-Las Vegas, for cuts.

"I would not, at this point, advocate any particular cuts right now," Beers said.

Instead, Beers said Nevada should have meaningful discussion about which programs could be cut to spare what could be $350 to $500 per person in new taxes.

Beers said that while programs like the state college make sense in states with larger population, Nevada still has a responsibility to fund K-12 education before it dabbles in what he calls "third-tier university programs."

"We have systematically gone off in tangential exercises and ignored our core responsibility to K-12," Beer said.

If he was given the choice, he said, to give K-12 teachers raises or fund the state college, he would opt for the raises.

Other programs have been eyed for cuts to offset the impact of any tax increases.

State Sen. Ann O'Connell, R-Las Vegas, proposed eliminating the state printing office and the state motor pool, two ideas she since shelved after learning the cost savings from eliminating those programs was negligible.

With Guinn set to outline his budget and proposed tax increases Monday in his State of the State address, projects with big financial requests will likely see big cuts.

UNLV's dental school, for example, was funded largely through estate funds that have been reduced over the years. The funding for the school depends largely on who dies and bequeaths estate money.

Estimates for state money to take the place of estate funds for the dental school and other higher education programs range from $30-$60 million.

The state college, controversial from the outset, is still not accredited. Until it receives provisional accreditation, students cannot receive federal loans or Pell grants and the college cannot apply for federal aid to ease the state's financial burden.

The 1999 Legislature allocated $500,000 for a feasibility study of starting the college. The 2001 Legislature approved start-up costs, a $13 million pledge for capital costs and $3.75 million for the first academic year, based upon 500 full-time students.

If the school fails to raise $10 million, it will lose the state's matching $13 million for capital costs.

Perkins said he did not want to see all of the college's funding cut for several reasons.

If the college is not funded, he said, it will lose the ability to lease land from the Bureau of Land Management for its prospective building.

"You can't just close the doors without a cost either," Perkins said.

Current teachers and administrators are under contract, and students would be left without a school if the entire funding was taken, he added.

But for Perkins, who is planning to run for governor in 2006, the move to cut funds from the project is also designed to deflect criticism of the project during the 2003 Legislature.

Both Perkins and Romesburg said they're hopeful the state college has a chance to prove itself.

Roughly 80 percent of the students enrolled at the state college are on track to become teachers or nurses -- two professions for which Nevada has severe shortages.

Perkins said he still believes the state college "is going to be a flagship program of the state."

Romesburg said that although he is new to Nevada, he also believes the college will end up saving tens of millions of dollars in the future as its enrollment grows and it becomes a viable alternative to UNLV.

"The challenge I am really going to have is trying to convince a Legislature that is very focused on short-term, that it is in the long-term interest in the state to maintain this institution and support it," Romesburg said. "That's not going to be easy."