Associated Press
MINNEAPOLIS — The board overseeing the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system has cut its budget request to the Legislature, citing the severe economic downturn.
The MnSCU Board of Trustees on Wednesday approved seeking a $71.7 million increase for the next two-year budget period. That’s a reduction of $55 million from the $126.7 million increase in the system’s state appropriation that the board began considering in September.
Chancellor James McCormick says even if lawmakers approve the full $71.7 million increase, the presidents of MnSCU colleges and universities will still face tough decisions.
McCormick calls it "a bare-bones budget." MnSCU says it’s the lowest biennial request in the system’s 13-year history.
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The request approved by the board assumes tuition increases of 3 percent a year at state universities and 2 percent a year at state colleges if it’s fully funded.
