Pennsylvania’s Public Colleges Will See State Support Drop by 19%, Not 50%

June 24, 2011, 1:26 pm

Three months after Pennsylvania’s public colleges were rocked by word that Gov. Tom Corbett wanted to cut their state appropriations by 50 percent, the colleges today got a reprieve of sorts. According to The Patriot-News, a Harrisburg newspaper, budget talks between Governor Corbett, a Republican, and legislative leaders resulted in a deal under which the colleges would see their state support drop by 19 percent—a substantial amount, but nothing like half. Pennsylvania State University’s appropriation, for example, would fall from $264-million to $214-million, about what it was in the mid-1990s. Also covered by the budget deal are three other state-related colleges—Lincoln and Temple Universities and the University of Pittsburgh—as well as 14 universities in the State System of Higher Education, the Associated Press reported. Democratic lawmakers, who were not involved in the talks, have called for using surplus state revenue to reduce the cuts even further.

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mickfan

It’s like, “Dad, I didn’t get all F’s, only 2.” An almost 20% cut is still a VERY deep cut, especially to the lean and mean PASSHE schools, the 14 state-owned schools.
cordelia

Yes, this is hardly a reprieve for PASSHE and its students. Since the faculty contract is still being negotiated, pay cuts and an increased share of benefits costs will likely get pushed through, and we have already been alerted to expect a large increase in class sizes. Students can expect another tuition increase as well.

And still no tax on gas and oil exploration in the state.
agrudjr

In WA state my university has seen its state appropriation, over the past biennium and the new biennium starting next month, drop by 52%. It would be helpful to hear what the *past* cuts have been in PA.
suzannewayne

How sad is it when it takes nearly 4 months for a republican governor to come to an agreement with lawmakers of his own party?
whizzkid43

Welcome to the rest of the academic universe. Why did you think your state would be spared?
22113683

About as sad as when a democrat president can’t get the senators of his own party to even vote on a budget for—what is it now?—almost 800 days. (Even the Siege of Leningrad only lasted 900!)
rossirwin

I hope members of his own party are entitled to their first amendment rights and don’t always have to be YES persons.
cordelia

Nobody said we thought we’d be excluded from the economic crisis. But it’s a shame that public school systems and PASSHE are gettting their budgets slashed when big corporations are getting more and more tax breaks while sending their work abroad and millions of dollars are sitting in the state reserves.
awegweiser

I have lived in the Commonwealth since 1969 and nobody has yet explained to me just what a Commonwealth is nor why PA has three separate systems of high ed. The all mighty Penn State and its tentacle satellites all over, the “State Related” group and 14 State Universities (formerly Colleges) – and what of the Community Colleges? We know which group usually gets the lions share (pun/clue intended) of funding. How come the loyal fans of such good football and some excellent research, do not rise up in righteous anger at our sweetheart Governor?
mrmars

“Only 19%.” Oh joy! With this as a lead-in the PASSHE-APSCUF contract negotiations should be truly amazing.
http://twitter.com/gurulibrarian Diana Moore

The only way I was able to afford college was through Stafford unsubsidized and subsidized loans and a PA state university. Will this even be an option for future students who like me did not have parents willing to help with college and made too much money to qualify for other financial aid? Of course I graduated with crushing debt that I could not afford to pay in a reasonable fashion.
cwm4c

Comparing cutting Higher Ed budgets with Corporate tax breaks is worse than apples v. oranges, more like apples v. tractors. And the line, “Democratic lawmakers, who were not involved in the talks, have called for using surplus state revenue to reduce the cuts even further” is laughable–what world are they living in? There is a deficit in PA–not a surplus–unbelieveable!
cwm4c

Historically, with inflation, PA has dramatically increased its appropriation since 1980
corwinamber

When I went to college what loans I had were small and easily paid off. I could afford grad school in part because of National Defense Student Loans and,later, loan forgiveness for teaching. Now I see students missing 0930 classes because they worked the night shift at a hotel desk to pay tuition, or overtime at the sub shop while trying to do an evening grad class. Clearly our priorities have shifted: better to spend billions on non-existence WMDs in Iraq and a pointless nation building exercise in Afghanistan then to invest a fraction of that in ensuring some modicum of learning and potential in our current generation of college age students. I can’t imagine how my younger colleagues rationalize the cost of their graduate degrees, and feel sorry for those who think that processing larger numbers of students in fewer classes is a sufficient solution to the problems facing this country. The present situation is a non-partisan series of mistakes, but right now the Republicans in the states and in the U.S. House are primarily responsible for taking a bad situation and making it worse. They should pay for it in the next election, if we can manage to get past all the various techniques of voter suppression being implemented around the country these days.
drj50

@cwm4c: “There is a deficit in PA–not a surplus–unbelieveable!”The projected surplus for 2011-12 (i.e., surplus above the governor’s proposed $27 billion total budget) continues to grow. The most recent media reports put the figure at over $700 million.
drj50

@cwm4c: “Historically, with inflation, PA has dramatically increased its appropriation since 1980.”
I am not sure where you are getting your information. State appropriations per student are down 20% over the past 10 years. This is not using inflation-adjusted (“constant”) dollars, so the real decline would be greater.
cwm4c

I focused on 30 years, and I answered it without the “per student” qualifier. Total outlays have grown over those years, and the universities swelled with it. If every appropriation increase was met with an increase in students (it was), then per student cost doesn’t fit
cwm4c

Think we are looking at semantics here drj50. The legislation has been working to try and shore up the $4B shortfall for months(Since the Gov took office), debating various cuts to achieve it, including everywhere from 50% to now 19% for higher ed. BTW–The $27.3 B also includes various one-time fund transfers as the keystone state is so fond of every year. The $500-700M surplus I think you both are referring to is that the state treasurer now believes the state may have overtaxed individuals and corporations to that tune, yet it has not been verified, nor determined if the state should keep it or return it–side note, what should they do? :). Even if there, it would mean that the state doesn’t have to cut $4B this year, only $3.3-3.5B which is better for sure.
millersr

As students (and their parents) wait to see what their public college education will cost this fall (PA last year had one of the highest in-state tuitions – if not the highest – in the nation), you can almost hear the Community Colleges smiling…
cbres

What a commentary it is that Penn. “only” cut support for higher ed by 19%. This is a good reason why I am starting an academic/administrative position at a private institution after 26 years in public highed education.