On Feb. 28, Gov. Robert Bentley announced a 3 percent across-the-board cut in the state education budget, a declaration that will reportedly cost UA $4.2 million.
Despite the cuts, UA System Chancellor Malcolm Portera said he expects no changes in normal operations at the Universty, because University President Robert Witt had created a proration reserve to be used to address possible cuts in state funding.
“The recent cuts were not a surprise, although we were all hoping that we might see a continued uptick in the economy and avoid further cuts,” Portera said. “We had put in place plans to minimize the negative effects of more proration, so we had prepared for the cuts.”
Last week, Witt sent a campus-wide e-mail to faculty and staff members, addressing the situation.
“I am sure you are aware that Gov. Bentley has announced 3 percent proration in the Education Trust Fund, effective immediately,” Witt said in the statement. “The University of Alabama will use central administration reserves to cover this $4.2 million loss in state funding. Academic and operating units will not be affected, and we will continue to focus on ensuring a quality academic experience for our students.”
Including the University’s $4.2 million loss, it has been reported that Bentley’s declaration of proration will cost the system $13 million in the remaining seven months of the 2011 fiscal year.
Patrick Gray, a junior majoring in nutrition, said he was happy to learn that the governor’s declaration of proration would not affect the University’s everyday business operations.
“When I first heard Gov. Bentley had announced the 3 percent cut in the education budget, I was a little worried about how that might affect our campus because I knew that it would likely be a costly cut to us,” Gray said. “However, it was a relief to learn that President Witt had created a proration reserve to help ensure that nothing would change when something like this actually happened.”
Gray said he had no idea what would have been cut had Witt not created a proration reserve.
“I’m not sure how the University would have decided what to cut and what not to cut,” he said. “The $4.2 million cut that affected UA is a lot of money. I’m not an expert, but I feel like losing that much would have affected a lot of people on this campus, both students and faculty and staff members. I’m glad, for the University’s sake, that no hard decisions about what to cut will have to be made this year.”
In addition to the 3 percent proration in the education budget, Bentley announced plans to declare 15 percent proration in the state’s General Fund after first working with the legislature.
“Both our Education Trust Fund and our state’s General Fund budgets are based on unreliable revenue projections,” Bentley said in a news release. “Now, five months into the 2011 Fiscal Year, it is clear that there is not enough revenue to sustain either budget. Proration is necessary to balance the budgets.”
Proration in the Education Trust Fund is effective immediately.
