Weeks of February 14-27, 2010

FY11 Operating Budget
The House Finance Subcommittee closed out the university's FY11 operating budget request this past week, cutting the Governor's budget by $2.3 million. The amended budget does not support additional energy costs borne by UAF due to weather and energy cost increases, nor does it support a request to fund new costs associated with two new facilities, (the Integrated Science Facility in Anchorage, and the additional cost to UAF now that the State Virology Building is on line.) In addition, the members considered a future funding formula to fund the operating budget based on state general fund support as a percentage of the total funds the university raises elsewhere.

Happenings:
UA Student Governance Coalition members met in Juneau this past week to learn about the legislative process and meet with legislators on issues important to their membership, including needs-based funding for students. Many of the students learned about the process the hard way as they flew throughout Alaska and Seattle trying to land in Juneau during a very foggy weekend. Needless to say, not all made it into the capital city, and some have plans to try again. Those members that did make it into Juneau were able to meet with many legislators and staff, and met with the UA Boosters Caucus, as well as UAF Chancellor Rogers and Dept. of Education Commissioner Larry LeDoux. Kudos to all the students who participated – in and out of Juneau!

Special Note:
The House Finance Committee has posted times and locations for their only statewide teleconference on the FY11 state operating budget March 2nd and 3rd. This is your opportunity to tell the legislators what is important to you about the university budget in terms of programs, research, outreach, and higher education in Alaska.

What to expect in the next few weeks:
Many members of the legislature will be traveling to Washington DC to attend the annual Energy Council meetings, so expect committee hearings and floor sessions to be in recess until March 9th. Once they get back, the House will be in full gear to pass the FY11 state operating budget, and the Senate is already having subcommittee hearings on the same subject, with the intent to get their version of the budget on the Senate floor by March 22nd or so.

The UAF Alumni Association will be in Juneau March 21-23 to meet with legislators and staff about issues important to the organization, including the Life Sciences Facility, deferred maintenance funding, and legislation dealing with education tax credits, and the Governor's Performance Scholarship program.

Also note that when the operating budget deliberations are being finalized, the capital project budgets will be under discussion. While it is typical not to see the results until the very end of session, it's not too early to send in letters of support for Life Sciences, and deferred maintenance at UA. The session ends April 19, 2010.

Review of week of February 8-12, 2010

Coming up week of February 16-21, 2010

The legislature is heading into finishing up the first month of session, with two months to go as of Feb. 19. This report is a review of the week of Feb. 8-12, and an overview of this current week of Feb. 15-21 as it relates to university issues.

FY11 Operating/Capital Budgets:
This past week, all three UA Chancellors testified before the House Finance Subcommittee on the UA budget, each talking about the partnerships, cooperation and continuity between the three major academic units. The Co-Chairs of House Finance wanted to know if the university was one entity, or three, and also asked the group to explain the organizational structure of the university, as it is different from that of a state agency. The Subcommittee is comprised of all the members of the full committee, although not all members were present. Note the House Finance Subcommittee will continue to meet on Tuesday mornings until they close out the University FY11 operating budget.

Note the current plan is for the House to complete their operating budget deliberations before March 15th, and the Senate plans to finish their subcommittee hearings by March 22nd or so, giving the body time to override any vetoes by the governor before adjourning on April 19th.

The three chancellors also testified before the new UA Boosters Caucus, again talking about the coordination between the university campuses, and each talked about some of the specifics of their respective units. The UA Boosters Caucus was formed this past December to provide support on matters pertaining to the University. This ad-hoc group has four co-chairs, including Senators Ellis and Thomas, and Representatives Dahlstrom and Fairclough. They intend to meet four times during session, and the first meeting was devoted to talking to the Chancellors about their respective campuses. They will also be meeting with the Student Governance Coalition on February 22, and plan a meeting with the Board of Regents, as well as one with members of the public prior to adjournment.

Another budget bill of note is the Governor's deferred maintenance bill (HB 325 and SB 253), which would provide 'early' funding of a $100 million list of capital projects aimed at public buildings and infrastructures. Included in these bills is $37.5 million for the University's deferred maintenance projects, figured on a percentage of total university buildings in relationship to all state buildings.

Note: Be prepared to participate in the House Finance Committee's statewide FY11 operating budget teleconference, due to come up possibly as early as the last week in February. These times will be posted on our website when we learn of the hearing. This is one of two times in the legislative session where the public is asked to comment on the various aspects of the state operating budget, and although a time allotment of 2 minutes is posted, the more individuals that testify from every area of the state, the better. Stay tuned!

Legislation:

Life Sciences: SB 56, an appropriation bill for the Life Sciences Facility, was heard in the Senate Education Committee and moved out to the next committee of referral, the Senate Finance Committee – Senators Thomas, Stevens, and Davis each signed 'do pass' on the committee report.

Engineering: Also heard and passed out was SB 206, a $100 million appropriation bill to fund both an engineering facility on the UAA campus and the UAF campus. This bill also received the same referral to Senate Finance, and Senators Thomas, Meyer, Stevens and Davis signed 'do pass'.

These bills will now sit in the Senate Finance Committee until such time as the Co-Chairs decide to hold hearings on the FY11 capital budget.

UA Lands Bills: One version of the UA Lands bill (HB 295) was also moved to the next committee of referral after being amended in the House Education Committee. The Committee Substitute deleted a portion of the land listed in the original version of the bill. This bill still has three committees to pass through before a House Floor hearing.

Education Tax Credits: SB 236, the education tax credit legislation, has been introduced on the Senate side. Currently, the law allows for an education tax credit of 50% of the first $100,000 given to an educational institution in the state, and 10% from $100,000 to $200,000. This bill would give a 50% tax credit for contributions over $200,000.

Governor's Performance Scholarship: SB 224 has had several hearings in the Senate Education Committee, and a committee substitute is in the works to consider a needs-based scholarship program as well. The committee is hearing the bill again this week.

Other items of interest:
Note the Board of Regents will be meeting in Fairbanks this week on Feb. 17-18, and will take public testimony on Thursday, Feb. 18 from 9 to 10 a.m. in person only. They will also be deliberating over their selection choices for the next university president, and will narrow the choices down to between 2-4 candidates. The remaining candidates will then meet with the Fairbanks community on March 1, the Anchorage community on March 2 and in Juneau on March 3. A full schedule and candidate names will be posted on the Regents' website when the names and times become available. (See: www.alaska.edu/bor/)

This week February 15 - 21:
Juneau Meetings:
Feb. 21 – 24 Coalition of Student Leaders meet in Juneau
Feb. 23 – Annual UAF Alumni Ice Cream Social – House Speaker's Chambers

Feb. 5, 2010

Three weeks into the 90-day session, and legislators' calendars are already packed with meetings, appointments, receptions, and House budget subcommittee hearings. School District representatives from around the state are due to land in Juneau this coming week.

FY11 Operating/Capital Budget:
The House Finance Subcommittee on the UA budget consists of all members of the House Finance Committee, as does the Senate's UA subcommittee makeup. To date, there have been two hearings on the operating budget, with the next one scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 9th with all three UA Chancellors giving overviews of their campuses.

The Senate Education Committee will have a hearing on February 10th regarding the Life Sciences Facility, and Engineering facilities at UAA and UAF.

The Governor's bill on funding $100 million of deferred maintenance projects, including $37.5 million of UA projects, is up for a hearing in House Finance Feb. 9th and 10th.

Legislation:
The UA Lands issue is again before the legislature. The issue is two fold – one to reauthorize prior conveyances of lands to the state's land-grant university, and also to address the issue of 'designated receipts'. The House bill has picked up its fourth committee of referral and has now had two hearings this session. The Senate bill has not had a hearing yet. A hearing on HB 295 is scheduled for Feb. 8th in the House Education Committee. In addition, HB 234 also addresses this issue.

The Governor's Performance Scholarship (HB 297 and SB 224) has had hearings in both the House and Senate Education Committees. Discussions center around the metrics of awards, as well as needs-based scholarships for Alaskan students. Another hearing is scheduled for Feb. 12th.

Professional Student Exchange loan forgiveness legislation is receiving some attention in the House Education Committee, and another hearing is scheduled for Feb. 8th in the House Education Committee.

Hearings of note:
The Senate Labor and Commerce Committee met this past week to get an overview from the Department of Commerce, Community and Regional Development, AIDEA, the Alaska State Chamber of Commerce and Representative Austerman's staff regarding an analysis of economic development opportunities through the state of Alaska. Rep. Austerman was recently appointed to chair the House Finance Subcommittee on Fiscal Policy. A newly formed ad-hoc committee known as the "UA Boosters Caucus" will meet on February 10th in the new Beltz Committee Room in the renovated Thomas Stewart Building located next to the Capitol building. Members include Senators Ellis, Thomas, Paskvan, Egan, French, Stevens, Wielechowski, Menard, and Representatives Holmes, Kelly, Gatto, Gardner, Guttenberg, Munoz, Petersen, and Ramras….. All three Chancellors are scheduled to speak at the meeting.

A new staff listing is available now. Please note there have been a number of office changes since last year, so be sure to check the roster before venturing into the Capitol Building.

Be sure to bookmark the calendar listing upcoming legislative committee hearings relative to UA issues.