State Rep. Mike Futrell, R-Baton Rouge, wants LSU to be recognized as the state’s most prominent university — not just in name, but also in financing.
House Bill 1529 proposes the creation of the “Flagship Fund,” which would provide financing available only to LSU. In conjunction, House Bill 1601 proposes additional mineral revenues be placed into the fund.
Currently, this money, which includes oil and gas revenues, is allocated for the state’s general fund and various constitutional funds up to $850 million. Any revenue in excess of $850 million is deposited into the Budget Stabilization Fund.
Under the proposed legislation, revenues up to $826 million would go to the general and constitutional funds, revenues in excess of $826 would be deposited into the “Flagship Fund” and revenues in excess of $850 million would still be deposited into the Budget Stabilization Fund.
“The flagship university will focus on outcomes that are designed to advance the University’s position to compete on all levels with the finest public universities in the country and will offer lifelong education, attract industry and improve the quality of life in the state,” House Bill 1529 reads. “Therefore, it is the intent of the legislature in furtherance of that recognition to provide additional funding and resources to our flagship university.”
Rep. Futrell, the author of the bill, is an LSU graduate who received a bachelor’s degree in business administration in 1982 and a law degree in 1985.
While the Board of Regents does not have an official position on the bill, Kevin Hardy, the Board of Regents communication director, said LSU already receives more state funding than any other public university in Louisiana.
“All the universities in the [Louisiana] system are funded based on a funding formula,” Hardy said.
He said this formula takes a number of factors into account, including the size of the institution, its mission and the number of degree programs the institution offers.
He said the formula is used in an attempt to fund Louisiana’s universities at a level comparable to that of their peer institutions. Hardy said there are no colleges or universities in the state that receive financing equal to the average of their peer institutions.
Hardy also said LSU receives a large portion of the Louisiana Educational Quality Support Fund, a fund originally created in 1986 as the result of a dispute the state had with the federal government regarding off-shore oil and gas royalties. Originally, $540 million was deposited into the account. It has now grown to nearly $1 billion.
Hardy said a portion of the interest from that account is devoted to higher education — and ultimately LSU.
“25 percent of the interest is divided evenly with elementary and secondary education and higher education,” he said. “We do use that for enhancement.”
The Louisiana Constitution states that this money can be used in four ways — to finance carefully defined research efforts, to fund the endowment of chairs for eminent scholars, to finance the enhancement of the quality of academic research or agricultural departments or units, and to finance the recruitment of superior graduate students.
As a result, he said LSU receives a large portion of this fund.
“As of 2003, LSU A&M has received approximately 30 percent of the total,” he said. “If you look at the LSU system, that figure is around 50 percent.”
This year, the Board of Regents has awarded $22 million from the fund to the state’s colleges and universities. In total, $144 million has been awarded since 1986.
In regards to the current legislative proposals, the House Education Committee will consider House Bill 1529. The House Appropriations Committee will consider House Bill 1601.