- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
Patrick Lenz, the University of California system’s vice president for budget and capital resources, made the following statement today (May 14) after Gov. Jerry Brown presented his revised state budget proposal for 2013–14:
“With this proposal, the governor is continuing his multi-year funding commitment to increase the University of California by 5 percent in the 2013–14 fiscal year and then 5 percent, 4 percent, and 4 percent in the subsequent fiscal years. In addition, the administration is continuing its support for UC restructuring debt to achieve $80 million in annual savings. Those savings will provide not only the additional fiscal stability to meet UC mandatory costs, but also funding to re-invest in the quality initiatives that will support the governor’s plan for additional performance outcome measures. The governor has withdrawn his 150 percent unit cap on state subsidized courses that would have impacted 2,200 UC students in the 2013–14 academic year.
“UC will continue working with the governor and the Legislature to address critical funding needs, such as a $15 million budget augmentation for the UC Riverside School of Medicine, a capital facilities funding plan to provide student access and address seismic retrofit, and funding for the state’s employer retirement contribution.”
- Author: Carolyn McMillan
UC to get modest boost from state budget
California Gov. Jerry Brown today (Jan. 10) proposed a state spending plan for the coming fiscal year that would provide a modest boost to the University of California's operating budget for 2013-14.
The state legislature still must agree to the spending plan, usually a lengthy negotiation process continues through spring. If enacted, the plan would restore $256.5 million of the $900 million cut from the university's state funding over the past five years. The California State University system would receive a similar budget increase.
"The leadership of the University of California is grateful that Gov. Brown is proposing re-investment in higher education," said Patrick Lenz, UC's vice president of budget and capital resources. "After absorbing nearly a billion dollars in state funding cuts during the past five years, we see his budget proposal as a very positive step forward in a process that will unfold over the next several months."
Nearly half of the $256.5 million UC would receive under Brown's plan is revenue that had been promised in return for UC's decision to forego a tuition increase this year despite a $750 million reduction in state funding.
In addition to the new revenue, Brown's budget plan would shift general obligation bonds to the university's base budget, a move that would add $201.7 million for both capital and operating budget purposes at UC. An additional $10.2 million would be provided for debt service on lease purchase revenue bonds. The transfer of the general obligation bonds to the university is significant because future state budget adjustments would be based on a UC appropriation of $2.84 billion rather than the current $2.37 billion.
UC officials said they were still reviewing the details of Brown's budget but agreed with its emphasis on holding down operating costs and ensuring that UC remains affordable to the state's students and families.
Lenz noted that UC is well on track to reducing systemwide administrative expenses by half a billion dollars over a five-year period, part of its ongoing effort to cut costs, find new revenue sources and work more efficiently.
"The state's recent disinvestment in higher education has forced significant tuition increases, but it's important to remember that tuition revenue covered only about 38 percent of the budget gap resulting from the cuts in state funding," Lenz said. "The rest of the shortfall was met through spending cutbacks, efficiencies and alternative revenue sources.
"Nonetheless, the university has continued to offer a seat to all eligible students wishing to attend UC and has ensured access for students from low- and moderate-income families. As a result, nearly half of all resident UC undergraduate students pay no tuition. We share Gov. Brown's interest in stabilizing tuition, and will explore every opportunity to do so."
VP Patrick Lenz's statement: Brown’s proposed budget: positive step forward
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
President Mark G. Yudof and UC's 10 chancellors today (Nov. 7) issued the following letter to the UC community:
To the UC Community:
We write today to the entire University of California community — students and their families, faculty and staff, alumni and friends — to express our relief and gratitude that the voters of California have approved Proposition 30. We are especially grateful for the Academic Senate Memorial on UC funding, and to Chair Sherry Lansing and the UC Regents for publicly endorsing this proposition. The Regents' endorsement, along with those of other public higher education sectors, gave the proposition much-needed visibility and momentum statewide.
The passage of Governor Brown's budget initiative has created an opportunity to bring stability to the funding of public higher education in California. The task ahead of us now is to do everything possible to strengthen the capacity of the University to serve people in every part of the state through academic excellence and public service.
Many of you worked hard to spread the word about Proposition 30. This is particularly true of students, who both registered tens of thousands of new voters and lobbied broadly on behalf of Proposition 30. As a public institution, we weren't allowed by law to advocate for how people should vote, but together we shared why Proposition 30 was of paramount importance to the University of California. It is clear that our message resonated.While there is much more work ahead of us, we are confident that this success will pave the way to a more stable future for the University of California, and to a brighter future for the state of California.
President Mark G. Yudof University of California |
Chancellor Michael Drake University of California, Irvine |
Chancellor Dorothy Leland University of California, Merced |
Chancellor Robert J. Birgeneau University of California, Berkeley |
Chancellor Susan Desmond-Hellmann University of California, San Francisco |
Chancellor Timothy P. White University of California, Riverside |
Chancellor Gene Block University of California, Los Angeles |
Chancellor Linda Katehi University of California, Davis |
Chancellor Henry T. Yang University of California, Santa Barbara |
Chancellor George R. Blumenthal University of California, Santa Cruz |
Chancellor Pradeep Khosla University of California, San Diego |
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
At noon today, Nov. 2, join the web chat with UC President Mark Yudof and Staff Advisors to the Regents Kevin Smith and Kathy Barton.
A central focus of the discussion will be UC’s financial future and how success or failure of Proposition 30, Gov. Jerry Brown’s November ballot initiative, could impact UC.
The live employee web chat will take place on Friday, Nov. 2, from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. on UStream TV.
The event is an opportunity for all UC faculty and staff to have an open conversation with President Yudof about some of the issues facing the university and its employees.
“With the upcoming election and so many critical issues facing UC and all of higher education,” Smith said, “we wanted to give employees a chance to speak directly with President Yudof.”
You are encouraged to submit questions during the web cast via UStream (see instructions below), but you may also submit questions directly to the staff advisors via this email link in advance of the event.
View the webcast and submit questions
- Watch and participate in the web chat Friday, Nov. 2, from 12 to 1 p.m. at: http://www.ustream.tv/ucevents.
- To submit questions and comments during the web chat, you must create a UStream account. This is a simple process that takes about one minute. Sign up for an account at http://www.ustream.tv/login-signup. Note: Creating a UStream account is not required to simply view the webcast.
Technical information
To participate in the live web chat, we recommend the following:
- A high-speed (broadband) Internet connection (1.5mbps/sec or greater)
- Speakers and/or headphones to listen to audio
We have tested the stream and chat with the following Internet browsers:
- Internet Explorer 8 and 9*
- Firefox 3
- Safari 5
- Google Chrome
*Please note: Users who attempt to create a UStream account using Internet Explorer 7 may encounter problems. We recommend using Firefox or Internet Explorer 8 to create an account. An account is required only if you wish to participate in the chat session; you may view the webcast without participating in the web chat and without creating a UStream account.
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
On Friday, Nov. 2, join UC President Mark Yudof and Staff Advisors to the Regents Kevin Smith and Kathy Barton for a web chat.
A central focus of the discussion will be UC’s financial future and how success or failure of Proposition 30, Gov. Jerry Brown’s November ballot initiative, could impact UC.
The live employee web chat will take place Nov. 2, from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. on UStream TV.
The event is an opportunity for all UC faculty and staff to have an open conversation with President Yudof about some of the issues facing the university and its employees.
“With the upcoming election and so many critical issues facing UC and all of higher education,” Smith said, “we wanted to give employees a chance to speak directly with President Yudof.”
You are encouraged to submit questions during the web cast via UStream (see instructions below), but you may also submit questions directly to the staff advisors via this email link in advance of the event.
View the webcast and submit questions
- Watch and participate in the web chat Friday, Nov. 2, from 12 to 1 p.m. at: http://www.ustream.tv/ucevents.
- To submit questions and comments during the web chat, you must create a UStream account. This is a simple process that takes about one minute. Sign up for an account at http://www.ustream.tv/login-signup. Note: Creating a UStream account is not required to simply view the webcast.
Technical information
To participate in the live web chat, we recommend the following:
- A high-speed (broadband) Internet connection (1.5mbps/sec or greater)
- Speakers and/or headphones to listen to audio
We have tested the stream and chat with the following Internet browsers:
- Internet Explorer 8 and 9*
- Firefox 3
- Safari 5
- Google Chrome
*Please note: Users who attempt to create a UStream account using Internet Explorer 7 may encounter problems. We recommend using Firefox or Internet Explorer 8 to create an account. An account is required only if you wish to participate in the chat session; you may view the webcast without participating in the web chat and without creating a UStream account.