Office of the Chancellor > Budget Updates > March 12, 2009

Chancellor's Budget Update for March 12, 2009

Dear Colleagues,

Today, Senior Vice Chancellor and Chief Financial Officer Ric Porreca updated the Board of Regents on our budget and I want to share the information with you. As you are aware, the University of Colorado at Boulder and higher education institutions across the nation are facing trying economic times and budget reductions.

We are not stopping the great work we are doing as Colorado's flagship university, but we are going to be slowing down on some of our expenditures until the economy improves. At CU-Boulder, we are not currently anticipating layoffs or mandatory furloughs, however, the CU system must cut $8 million from the current fiscal year budget by June 30. CU-Boulder's portion of that amount is proposed at $3.9 million.

Those reductions will be absorbed in several ways.

• The allocation that all the campuses pay to help support the CU system office will be reduced, with CU-Boulder's portion reduced by $772,000.
• Twelve vacant faculty positions will be eliminated for a savings of $1.44 million.
• Eight staff positions will go unfilled for a savings of $600,000.
• Reductions to campus information technology support will save $333,000.
• Funding for Flagship 2030 initiatives will be reduced by $330,000, but the overall plan and goals will continue to be supported.
• We will reduce campus research infrastructure support by $210,000.
• We will save $215,000 through operating budget reductions in equipment, travel, office supplies, communications charges and maintenance contracts.

Based on current state revenue projections, the CU system is scheduled for another $6 million state budget reduction in fiscal 2009-2010. CU-Boulder's share is currently projected to be $2.46 million, effective July 1, but that figure could be revised based on the March 20 state budget forecast. We are currently working with campus units to evaluate proposed reductions and impacts.

The economy may impact enrollment at CU-Boulder and across the country. We anticipate a freshman class enrollment comparable to prior years, but it is unlikely to be as large as the record 2008 class. We will pay particular attention to non-resident enrollments which, with a significantly higher tuition rate, may be more heavily impacted by the national economy.

State budget cuts also have hit us in capital construction and state financial aid. While funding for the Visual Arts Complex has been restored, CU-Boulder has lost nearly $24 million in appropriated capital construction funds this year, which is more than 50% of the total for state higher education. We are hopeful that much of this can be restored through the federal stimulus package funds received by the state of Colorado.

In financial aid, the state of Colorado is proposing a reduction in state-aid programs for all Colorado higher education institutions in fiscal 2010 which translates to $982,000 for CU-Boulder. State-aid programs slated for elimination by the state are the Colorado Merit Program, the Colorado Pre-Collegiate ACG Program and the Graduate Need Grant Program. We are not considering reductions in institutional financial aid at this time.

We have worked diligently with the Boulder Faculty Assembly, the Chancellor's Executive Committee (which includes faculty, staff, student and administration representatives), the Deans Council, the vice chancellors, and other campus groups and offices to arrive at these and future reductions that are under our control. We are committed to an open process and we will keep you apprised on further developments in the budget situation. As always, I want to thank you for your continued support and effort on behalf of CU-Boulder.

Sincerely,

G.P. "Bud" Peterson
Chancellor