The Board of Supervisors met Friday morning to discuss the distribution of $107 million in supplemental state appropriations from the general appropriations bill (HB105) for the next fiscal year.
The State General Fund for Higher Education increased by $47 million, providing $15 million to fully fund TOPS and a $9 million increase to the Higher Education Funding Formula. The budget for Fees & Self-Generated Revenue increased by $70 million due to changes in enrollment.
The budget for total interagency transfers decreased by $5 million, and the budget for federal funds decreased by $11 million.
Go Grants funding continues at $28.4 million in the State General Fund (Direct), and the next budget now includes an addition of State General Fund (Direct) to LSU Health Sciences Centers in New Orleans and Shreveport (receiving $2.2 million and $917,000, respectively), Pennington Biomedical Research Center ($1 million) and the University ($370,000).
Additionally, board members pointed out that faculty salaries at the University are 7.3% below SEC average, core expenditures per student are 29% below average and administrative costs are 61% lower than SEC average.
“LSU is efficient, but we would all agree that our students want more than just an efficient university,” said one board member. “Our students want a solid value in their educational experience, which is a balance of being affordable and also having a high quality education that is provided by the best faculty and the best facilities that we can provide.”
The attached resolution authorizes the President to begin distributing all appropriations received for FY 2020. The final FY 2020 University operating budget will be presented to the Board for approval at its Sept. 13 meeting.
LSU Board of Supervisors meet in the Administration Building on October 24, 2014. The Board met Friday to discuss a number of issues, including the 2020 fiscal year budget.
