Gov. Bobby Jindal told The News-Star the worst-case scenario cuts facing Louisiana’s higher education aren’t likely.”I don’t anticipate that’s going to happen,” Jindal told the Monroe newspaper of the possible 30-percent budget cut.Including the now permanent $10.3 million in mid-year budget cuts, LSU’s main campus in Baton Rouge would see a total budget reduction of about $71.9 million for the fiscal year beginning July 1 if state funds were cut by 30 percent, said Bob Kuhn, associate vice chancellor of Budget and Planning. The LSU System as a whole would see about $208.8 million in cuts under a 30 percent reduction.Though Jindal told The News-Star these agencies should expect cuts, the reductions won’t likely be the worst possible. “It’s still very early in the budget process,” Jindal told the newspaper. “These numbers are likely to change. There are many more steps in the process.”Jindal pointed The News-Star to look at the recent midyear cuts, much of which higher education absorbed.”These are worst-case scenarios,” Jindal told the newspaper. “Look what happened this year. We did make adjustments, but even after the cuts higher education was funded with more dollars this year than last.”Jindal also told the paper there will be significant “belt-thigtening, but people shouldn’t panic when they see these early plans.”The LSU System responded Feb. 4 to the Division of Administration’s “budget reduction exercise,” in which the DOA told System officials to outline a plan as if cuts in state funding occurred between about 18 and 30 percent next year.University administrators have met with faculty to develop plans during the past two weeks.”The Governor and the Legislature have been strong in their support of higher education, and we know that they will find these consequences outlined in the budget reduction scenario unacceptable,” said System President John Lombardi in an e-mail to The Daily Reveille. “Nonetheless, we were required to demonstrate how such reductions would impact our institutions, and that is what the document provides.”——Contact Kyle Bove at [email protected]
Jindal: worst-case budget cuts unlikely – 12:30 p.m.
February 8, 2009