Topic: Education
One Billion Stimulus Dollars to Save California’s Universities Tax cutting Republicans will not trumpet this, and tax-them-ever-more Democrats won't admit this, but over a billion dollars of President Obama's stimulus money is finding a happy home in California's universities. The scandal is not Governor Schwarzenegger's draconian cuts; it's that California's universities' unfettered growth grows unchecked for yet another season.by Paul Benedict
(libertarian)
Friday, June 12, 2009
The teary-eyed T.V. ads worth more than the tuition of two hundred UC students blare that 1.2 billion in cuts will devastate the University of California and the California State University programs. Indeed, Schwarzenegger's May budget proposal (p.10-11) shows, in shocking detail, 510 million in cuts from each of California's major state run university programs (U.C. and C.S.U). A five hundred and ten million dollar cut from the 08-09 budget with almost no time left in the fiscal year is enough to startle even the most ardent budget hawk. But these are all half truths at best. When governor Schwarzenegger was pounding the metallic evil out of machines from the future, everyone knew that he meant business by his indefatigable grimace and the cold, calculating, recessed, gleam in his eyes. He, despite, the standard-English faux pas, was a far better actor than Ronal Reagan ever was. The governor, though, is not the best actor in Sacramento.
The office of Regents must have gotten a "C" in Acting 101. How can they possibly appear aggrieved and heroic victims of special interest groups (such as "We the People"), if they are going to make truthful statements such as: " U.C.'s state funding would be cut by $510 million in the current 2008-09 fiscal year and replaced by $640 million of federal stimulus money with $510 million of it for use in 2008-09 and $130 million for use in 2009-10." That's a net fiscal increase of 130 million dollars! This is the part where U.C. President Mark Yudof is supposed to fawn and say, "Thanks Obama." Or, more realistically, he could pound his breast and whisper to the heavens, "thanks U.C. class of 2030 for bailing us out when we have, for years and years, refused to lift even a finger to help ourselves." Instead, this is where the "B" movie acting really begins.
According to the Office of Regents, there are still real additional cuts in the U.C and Cal State 2009-2010 budgets. Since the May 19 ballot propositions were not approved by voters, the Office of U.C. Regents claims that governor's proposal for the 2009-10 fiscal year calls for UC to receive a reduction of $305 million in state funding, with $130 million of it replaced by the federal stimulus money for a net reduction $275 million. That is a little difficult to see as an amount of additional revenue loss. Based on the May Revision Proposal document, an additional 50 million in general funds money will be cut from the U.C., offset by the 130 million in stimulus money. Thirty-one million U.C. outreach dollars will be cut from the U.C., but unless there has been some exciting accounting in the past, that should not affect U.C. student services. Ultimately, the total U.C. expenditures for 2008-2009 were a billion dollars more than they were in 2007-2008. The U.C. spent more than 19 billion dollars in 08-09. In any case a revenue shortfall of even 325 million is not a Shakespearean tragedy in a year that the state deficit is running twenty billion even after huge tax increases.
One of the reasons the net reduction in the U.C. budget is difficult to follow is that the State of California and the U.C. system have been involved in subtle accounting debates. Back in the glory days of 2005-2006 Governor Schwarzenegger's began to deliver a series of funding increases that were part of his "compact" with the University of California. However, as one bubble after another burst, mysterious unallocated reductions in funding for the U.C. began to appear. These were generally about the same amount as the compact increases. Hence, the real dollars proposed in the 2009-2010 budget, seem about equal to the real dollar state funding of 2008-2009 (after the unallocated 2008-2009 reductions). Since the annual unallocated reduction ("unallocated" means the board of regents does the "cutting") in 2009-2010 is 50 million, offset by 130 million in stimulus, it looks like the overall 2009-2010 real dollar funding is very close to that of 2008-2009. Is the Office of Regents calling a cut in growth a cut in real funding?
The Office of Regents has begun cost cutting measures: reduced bonuses (less new spending), cuts in incentive pay (fewer spending increases on salary for the best U.C. professors), and reduced travel. These are only slowdowns in the growth of spending.
On the other hand, the decreased targeted enrollments seem serious enough. Putting these targeted reductions together with proposed elimination of CAL Grant scholarships and increased student fees, a plan for slowing U.C. growth is taking shape. The State of California has promised the top 10% of high school graduates a place in the U.C. system. But if fewer students, no matter what their individual marits, can afford to attend, growth is curtailed. If growth is curtailed, the California universities can keep the stimulus monies for their pay increases and travel expenses. As usual, the state officials, the government-employee-for-lifers, only slow down what is spent for them while they plan to entirely cut off what belongs to the state's citizens. The State of California seems more than willing to take the educational bureaucracy growth out of the hides of California's students.
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You accuse the Regents of half-truths, but this article is itself full of half-truths, mistakes, and incomplete research asserted as fact.
First, while the Regents are the governing body for the UC, they have nothing to do with the CSU, which is a separate entity, with a very different organization and funding structure.
You are right, of course, that both the UC and CSU often assert figures based on cuts from "proposed budgets," which I'm sure they feel is a necessary negotiating tactic, but which I agree is misleading.
It is completely wrong, however, that they are not facing large budget cuts. Yes, federal stimulus fund will backfill some of these amounts, but less than half. For those who are interested in actual figures, rather than unsubstantiated claims, please consult the LAO's more recent analysis of June 1 in "State Budget Solutions in Higher Education," which lists 3.144 billion in reductions to UC and CSU, of which only 1.2 is backfilled by federal stimulus dollars. In fairness, these cuts are for two years (2008-09 and 2009-10), so the annual amount of cuts is only half of this total.
You should be aware, as well, that the State cannot cut the UC and CSU budgets below the 2005-06 budget year amounts and still accept stimulus dollars. But, contrary to the claims above, their proposed budgets have in fact been cut to approximately the 2005-06 amount. Moreover, this is despite the fact that they have more students now and higher costs owing to inflation.
I think Schwarzenegger should uphold the rule of law and govern by the rules set forth by the United States Constitution as he swore he would with his oath of office.
Back in the sixties the government came into the schools and brainwashed us with the idea we needed to control the population because it was rising so fast. They said the roads would become crowded and we would run out of things like water.
They unleashed abortions, birth control pills, and other forms of Family Planning.
To allow the country to be over run with the criminals in businesses illegal labor while the criminals in the government aid and abet the invasion is a travesty against mankind.
They have seen to it our children were killed to control the population at the same time allowing the world to export their population problems here.
What about our sacrifices, many made against our will?????
P.S. We still haven't recovered from the last time the criminals in business were allowed to bring in their slaves.
Posted By: Paul Benedict
Date: 2009-06-12 23:08:23
Hi Earl,
I meant to accuse the T.V. ads run by Common Sense For California of the use of half truths. Their reference to the 1.2 million in cuts leaves out all "backfilling" by the Obama Stimulus.
In fact, I applauded (somewhat bitterly) the Regents for mentioning the Obama Stimulus at all. It is mentioned in the May revisions, but one must look in the fine print.
My question about the "cuts in growth" or "cuts in real dollars" was not a rhetorical question. The question's sarcastic bite comes from by disappointment with this use of language on the federal level.
I am going on the May letter (before the special election) and the governor's May revision post election. Surely, you followed the links.
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