Facebook
Fark
Digg
Reddit
Stumblehigher education:
Board of Regents backs call for bigger higher education budget
Lone dissenter: Now not time to be ‘cheerleader’
Saturday, Aug. 28, 2010 | 2 a.m.
Ron Knecht
Chancellor Dan Klaich
Sun Coverage
Sun archives
- Board of Regents asks for increase in state funding (8-27-2010)
- Higher education wants bigger slice of state budget pie (8-24-2010)
- State education officials fear deep cuts for public schools (6-14-2010)
- $2.5 billion state budget deficit: ‘Best-case scenario’ (4-23-2010)
- Regents umbrella will help shield higher education from budget cuts (3-20-2010)
- Even UNLV’s nursing school steels for budget cuts (3-3-2010)
- Gibbons: School districts should brace for 10 percent cuts (2-2-2010)
- College students band together, rally against budget cuts (1-22-2009)
- Chancellor calls Nevada schools a ‘disaster’ (1-23-2009)
- UNLV fundraising campaign falls short, so deadline extended (12-18-2008)
- Emotional farewells at Regent’s meeting (12-5-2008)
- Rogers to budget cut protestors: Glad you’re here (12-4-2008)
The voice of dissent from upstate was blunt.
The chancellor of the university system had just presented a budget to the Board of Regents in Las Vegas that asked for $1 billion-plus in state spending, an increase of nearly 25 percent, when the governor had asked for cuts of 10 percent from all state agencies.
Ron Knecht, a regent from Carson City speaking by video link, said “expecting an increase at this point would be the height of self-absorption.” Unemployment is high, tax revenue down and a $3 billion shortfall looms in the coming $6.5 billion budget.
Knecht, a former state assemblyman, said the “current debate was often disconnected from the facts” and the board should represent the people of Nevada and not be “a cheerleader for higher education.”
Nonetheless, the regents Friday approved the budget by 11 in favor, 1 regent absent and Knecht voting against.
Overall, the 2011-13 budget request, including student and other fees, would rise more than 3 percent — factoring in a nearly 25 percent boost from the state — to $1.65 billion.
Unlike state agencies whose directors are appointed by the governor, the Board of Regents is elected and regards itself as independent from other state institutions.
Meanwhile, Rory Reid, the Democratic candidate for governor, proposed Thursday to save $2.5 billion through cuts and revenue growth in the next two years. He said his plan does not include tax increases.
Reid called for sharp cuts in state programs such as the state controller and treasurer’s offices, but did not explicitly mention higher education.
Reid is scheduled to debate his Republican opponent, Brian Sandoval, in Las Vegas on Sunday. Gov. Jim Gibbons, who called for budget cuts, was defeated in the primary. The most sensitive part of the regents’ proposed budget is the 72 cents of each budget dollar that would come from state spending, a sharp increase in the state share from 60 cents in the 2009-11 period.
Regents voted to ask for $1.19 billion, up 24.4 percent from the previous $956 million.
University officials noted that $185 million in federal stimulus money — included in the current budget — wouldn’t be available in the future.
Revenue from student fees would rise 6 percent to $443.7 million.
In an interview after the meeting, Ray Rawson, a regent from Clark County and a former state senator, reflected the opinion of most regents that identifying cuts is premature before the Legislature considers the budget as a whole.
“Some say, why not close a campus?” Rawson said. “Well, which campus would you close? Let’s close Western Nevada Community College. That may seem like a good idea down here” in Las Vegas.
“But it’s a pretty bad idea for Fallon or Carson City or people in more rural areas who ought to have the same right to education we do.”
Rawson noted that a shuttered campus is unlikely to reopen. “The things that we close now, we will never see again, they will never reopen,” Rawson said. “Let’s not make changes that are irreversible.”
He compared a university to a household in which one of the parents has lost a job and the family owes more on its house than it’s worth.
“We’re upside down,” he said. “But we ought to keep the house. That ought to be the last thing that goes.”
Rawson was appointed to the board by Gibbons after Steve Sisolak, the incumbent regent, was elected to the Clark County Commission. Knecht, the dissenting regent, is a former campaign official for Gibbons.
Chancellor Dan Klaich, who submitted the budget, noted the overall budget rise of 3 percent to $1.65 billion.
Klaich then talked about what he called the “elephant in the room,” Gibbons’ call for a 10 percent cut.
Klaich said undergoing more than one budget-cutting session would be ruinous to higher education.
“It’s programs, and careers and 120 days of hell, as you go through the list of who will stay and who will go,” Klaich said. “We can’t go to our campuses and say, ‘You may be next, but please stay and work.’ ”
And he noted the potential for a face-off with the governor over spending. “Nothing could be further from the truth” that the budget is somehow “in contempt” of Gibbons, Klaich said.
Michael Wixom, a regent from Clark County and a corporate attorney, said the chancellor is right. “I don’t like hypotheticals,” Wixom said. “This is premature. (The budget cut) could be 10 percent, it could be 15, and it could be 20. My experience tells me you go through this process once.
“Some have said we are on a happy journey through Oz. I don’t care. This discussion is not over. Give us a number.”
Discussion: comments so far…
Comments are moderated by Las Vegas Sun editors. Our goal is not to limit the discussion, but rather to elevate it. Comments should be relevant and contain no abusive language. Comments that are off-topic, vulgar, profane or include personal attacks will be removed. Full comments policy. Additionally, we now display comments from trusted commenters by default. Those wishing to become a trusted commenter need to verify their identity or sign in with Facebook Connect to tie their Facebook account to their Las Vegas Sun account. For more on this change, read our story about how it works and why we did it.
Only trusted comments are displayed on this page. Untrusted comments have expired from this story.
No trusted comments have been posted.
Post a comment
Most Popular
- Viewed
- Discussed
- E-mailed
- UNLV can move forward without the burden of losing streak to San Diego State
- A wife’s wisdom shows birth control issue needn’t be divisive
- Surprise links, negotiated deals addressed by commissioners
- Motorcycle accident claims life of man in northeast valley
- Hope and change and … what’s missing?
- New York mayor has the right idea
- We don’t need a CEO in charge
- Paying our own way
- Country has ‘given’ citizens a lot
- Jerry Tarkanian: Mike Moser impresses yet again on a day to remember former Rebel greats
Blogs
The Kats Report
Color from scene at Thomas & Mack: We have a wire job! Rebels win, and Louie Armstrong sings!
South Point owner Michael Gaughan's take on 'Vegas Stripped': 'I'll give it an 8' (4 Comments)
Author relishes writing the life story of ‘larger-than-life’ Oscar Goodman (3 Comments)
Elsewhere
Landowner: All roads could lead to Uxbridge casino
Revel reveals smoke-free casino opening
Cirque du Soleil show in Sands China casino to close this month
Meet the woman behind Sheldon Adelson
The Sun
Locally owned and independent for more than 50 years.
Klaich said. "We can't go to our campuses and say, 'You may be next, but please stay and work.' "
Why not? Everyone should know what is going on and makes the best decisions they can from themselves and their families. A lot more honest then what they are doing.
"He compared a university to a household in which one of the parents has lost a job and the family owes more on its house than it's worth."
"We're upside down," he said. "But we ought to keep the house. That ought to be the last thing that goes."
Under the Chancellor's plan the job goes, but they get to keep everything?
Get with the program, Chancellor. The fact is that everyone else in this state is operating under the assumption of a 10 percent cut and for good reason. The revenue is not expected to be there. It is better to have the debate and make the decisions.
No one, even Rory even with his mystery $615 million of revenues, is talking about no cuts. Nevertheless, the higher education system wonders on as though none of this is going on around them.
Ron Knecht is the only realist on the board. The rest are disconnected elitists.
I, for one, support tax increases to keep our police, firefighters, health care workers, teachers on the job. How are we going to attract business expansion and diversification if we have lousy public services? We need to particularly focus on corporate taxes, and start with the mining industry.
Buddy you just don't get it.
How about if UNLV is held accountable for the money and receive increases as a reward instead of as a black hole that doesn't produce for the money? Increase graduation rates for 2 years straight and then ask for more money once we see that you are dedicated to some type of performance improvement because as it is now, I don't see it really being money well spent, especially when we have foster childre, people in need of medical care, improved hospitals, homeless, elderly, and so on in need.
You can't go to an employee and say "you may be next but stay and work"? Why not. Isn't that how every business in Nevada works? If business drops employees are cut.
Only in higher education and government do employees think they are entitled to a job for life, with raises, and benefits.
Gbigs said "I pay $1m a year in taxes."
And be wAnts to close the university system. I guess what he really means is "I got mine and despite how great this state and this nation are and how even though lots of people paid taxes to train the teachers and medical professionals to get me where I am, I am too f'ing greedy to contribute to anyone else having my opportunity. I don't want to pay my share of training teachers and nurses and accountants etc. I too greedy to pay unemployment insurance premiums so the people that get laid off can eat or buy clothes for their kids."
He'll say anything, exaggerate anything to further his agenda. This places all his posts in in perspective.
STATE LOTTERY...STATE LOTTERY...STATE LOTTERY...STATE LOTTERY...STATE LOTTERY...STATE LOTTERY!!!!
Nevada has a high per person state payroll because it employs the fewest state employees per capita asking it's employees to do more with less. We have the 50th state tax burden.
And the reference to "stay and work but you may be next" is to quality teachers who have a choice to leave Nevada. Its called a brain drain when talented people move to where they are appreciated. And the grad rate is lower than anyone wants because UNLV does't have the funding to have enough of the classes students need to graduate. If you are one of fortunate at UNLV, it takes six years.
When someone cuts off your right arm, you don't sit down with that person and discuss the most painless way to allow him to cut off your left.... You fight like hell to keep your left arm, and maybe even seek some damages from the first assault.
@hss46...
"Nevada has a high per person state payroll because it employs the fewest state employees per capita asking it's employees to do more with less. We have the 50th state tax burden."
woodysez...
"How are we going to attract business expansion and diversification if we have lousy public services? We need to particularly focus on corporate taxes, and start with the mining industry."
GREAT POINTS.
gmag says...
When WILL the clueless followers of the right-wing propaganda machine realize they have been USED & ABUSED by people that DO NOT CARE ONE SCINTILLA about them???
You clowns just do not get it, do you? There is no money....Cut back your huge expenditures....
The Dumbing Down of Nevada...
We are so close, you can SMELL IT!!!
@gbigs
You've been corrected before, but you continue to post misleading information.
Nevada state employees are NOT paid the 6th best in the nation. Nevada PUBLIC employees are. That includes city and county workers, as well as state workers.
City and county workers make far more money than state workers. In addition, the study you so often quote from states that teachers and higher education employees make LESS than the national average.
@gbigs
Perhaps you should reread the story to which you are linking, because it illustrates my point and not yours.
6th best in the nation refers to state and local workers combined. In your post at 10:14 a.m., and again at 10:47 a.m., you claim that STATE workers are paid 6th best in the nation; however, your link does not support that declaration.
Unlike you, I won't include insults in my post because that does nothing to elevate the debate. However, I will say that Nevada has some great institutions of higher learning which are open to anyone who is interested in improving their reading comprehension skills.
Sigh. Sixth highest refers to all public employees, so when you remove county and city employees from the calculation, and look only at state employees, you will have a different ranking.
My only point was to encourage you to use accurate information, and then hopefully to continue the discussion from there. I tried. Have a good one, gbigs.
gbigs,
The rankings you are posting are 100% incorrect. Vegasveggie is correct when he says that state worker salaries are not 6th or 8th highest in the nation, in fact they are 15th with an average annual salary of $48,491. If you factor in local workers then the salary rises to $50,621 and an 8th place ranking. These figures come directly from the "State-to-State Comparison of Public Employee Compensation Levels" published by the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce in 2008 and the link is here:
http://www.lvchamber.com/files/pdf/FAB-s...
You need to stop posting now because you're embarrassing yourself.
gbigs
University teachers and administrators are NOT state employees. How in the world did you earn enough to pay $1 million in taxes? It certainly was not by using your brain, as I have seen several posts advising you of this but you continue to spew misinformation.
Why mining and engineers---perhaps because you are one of the mining creeps who continues to take this state for a ride. This state does not run on mining or engineers and they certainly don't pay their share.
they can ask for whatever they want, but the cost will come out of their salaries (adminitrations) to cover.
In this time where everyone must cut back & those of greatest means must incur higher taxes to offset massive deficits, universities are ripe for the budget axe. Fat salaries, deep benefits, tenure protections, multiple private and public revenue streams - get real...
-- a cool site; Balkingpoints ; incredible satellite view of earth
I am for the budget increase for the universities. NSHE schools deserve better.
Talk of socialism and elitism is such a blatant parroting of Palin and Beck talking points that those parrots should be embarrassed.
This state has never adequately funded education and I dare say that majority of the state populace is vehemently opposed to higher learning- to them having an education is socialism and elitism. Meanwhile, with that completely idiotic rational that betrays their level of ability to think, the state continues to hold strong to its last place in all quality of life indicators.
I won't disagree that there isn't some bloat in government, but to simply chuck aside problems with the dumb, simplistic Reaganism that government is the problem, is not a solution.
We end up paying more because our state continues to depend on other state's education systems to import talented, young, and dare I say, educated workers, and consequently, need to pay them more to keep them.
Higher education has been cut over and over again and it needs to stop. Before any further cuts or taxes are discussed, the discussion of taxing the brothel industry, which has PLEADED to be taxed for years, needs to take place.
I don't understand how people could advocate for spending more money when the state is making less money, it just doesn't make sense and it's very simple to grasp. The State is doing badly, that much is clear. So when you have less of something, doesn't it make sense to either get rid of things that are not necessities or at the very least scale back.
I mean if you lost your job (many people have), wouldn't you look to cut unnecessary spending so you don't go broke? Then, after you find a job, you can look to add some of your luxuries back.
Nevada doesn't seem to understand this.
Here's what puzzles me: We've promoted our tax-free status as being a HUGE benefit to recruiting companies to move to Nevada. I think everyone here agrees we need to diversify our economy. Being a one-horse town (gaming) just doesn't cut it. So, with all of these huge tax incentives, why aren't companies relocating here? Why isn't there bumper-to-bumper traffic on I-15 from over-taxed California?
We have a lousy infrastructure.
Our education system is at the bottom. But, people still want to cut funding. It's been underfunded for the 20 years I've lived here so let's trying funding it for a change and see what happens. I'm a capitalist and understand that money doesn't fix everything, but it sure can fix a lot.
I could go on about mental health, public safety and so on. Why we can only afford to put one cop in a patrol car and spread their resources so thin is just not right. But, that's a topic for another day.
And mining...I've never seen so many people afraid to hurt mining's feelings. Where else are they going to go? The gold and copper isn't moving. And when the mining companies have taken all they can from Nevada, guess what? They're going to split and leave us with nothing but some giant holes.
We shouldn't be like California by any stretch of the imagination, but we should at least have people pay their fair share of the community rent (roads, public safety and education).
I love how the banks, the Review-Journal, Wal-Mart, Barrick and other mining companies, etc., all make a LOT of money here, but send all of their money to other states to fund their public safety, roads and education programs. Why? Because we have no corporate profit tax like every other state. So, these companies use Nevada's roads, public safety and education systems but don't pay for them. Yet, their Nevada profits are taxed by their "home" states where their corporate headquarters.
Nevada has an amazing history of working it's butt off to benefit everyone but itself.
Actually, I'm not crazy about tax increases and I'm not crazy about making more cuts. I think what we need to do is figure out what kind of state we want to live in.
Do we want our schools to be at the top? Bottom? Somewhere in between? Figure that out and then FUND it appropriately and hold everyone's feet to the fire to be accountable.
What kind of industry do we want here? Figure that out and decide what it takes to get them here. My guess is it's gonna be a lot more than just no-to-low taxes. What infrastructure do these companies need?
The point is we're all trying to treat the symptoms, not the disease.