Colleges get extra funding from state

Jennifer Knight

Monday, June 23, 2003 | 11:03 a.m.

The Legislature handed the University and Community College System of Nevada more than $8 million in projects that it didn't ask for at the same time other projects it requested were passed over, officials said.

The Board of Regents received a list of capital improvement projects last week that were added by legislators during the last days of the regular 2003 session, which ended earlier this month.

The $8.6 million in legislative add-ons leapfrogged over 14 other items that were approved by regents and the Public Works Board, education and political officials said.

"If these were initiatives proposed by individual (college or university) presidents then I'm appalled," Regent Steve Sisolak said. "If these were floated by the Legislature, there's nothing I can do about it."

The items were rolled into Senate Bill 507, which authorized $218 million in state construction projects. Taxpayers will be assessed one penny for every $100 of assessed property value to pay for them.

Assemblyman Bob Beers, R-Las Vegas, said the items were added as favors by high-ranking committee members at taxpayer expense.

"There was actually a property tax increase to fund this pork," Beers said. "I think what causes things like this is people who have been legislating too long. Clearly, it is not fair to taxpayers to have to pay for this."

Among the items on the list of new projects is one that will give the Community College of Southern Nevada $1.25 million to renovate its security systems and to renovate a high school in Mesquite.

For $250,000 Great Basin College in Elko will add an oral health clinic.

The University of Nevada, Reno was the beneficiary of most of the money. It will receive $5 million in state money acquire land from a Catholic high school and create a women's athletics facility. The state money will match a $2.5 million donation.

Another $1.7 million will go toward studying a heart transplant facility and renovating an embalming facility. And $400,000 will be given to the university to pay for library renovations.

Such changes also represent an additional financial burden to an already stretched university system budget because new programs always mean more operating money down the road, Sisolak said.

"These projects, while they are all well-intentioned, are going to demand more money from our budget to operate these things," Sisolak said. "And I think it's unfair to criticize higher education for having our budget increased when these weren't our initiatives to begin with."

The handpicked projects jumped ahead of a student service building at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas that was listed as a No. 4 priority by regents. The building would have alleviated long lines for students. It also jumped ahead of an outreach center at CCSN and a biotechnology addition at UNR.

Members of the capital improvement subcommittee could not be reached for comment.

Carole Vilardo, president of Nevada Taxpayers Association, said it's difficult to decide whether such additions should be allowed.

"We've wrestled with that," Vilardo said. "You look at the projects sometimes and some of them are very worthwhile. But when it comes to funding, sometimes it is in the eye of the beholder."

John Cummings, CCSN's counsel to the president and government liaison, defended the items.

"If you want to define the safety and security of thousands of students and faculty and the health and welfare of our citizens as pork, then I would offer that they are misinformed or misguided," Cummings said. "The fact that we can have better libraries, ensure our daughters won't be hurt in poorly lighted parking lots and have decent dental care, yeah, I think that's what we want to pay for."

Legislators will begin looking at ways to pay for the budget items they approved during a special session starting Wednesday.