UH hoping for slice of university fund pie
Resolution would give Houston campus piece of Permanent University Fund
Lawmakers heard testimony on a long-shot resolution that would expand access to the multibillion dollar fund that finances the University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M University.
The University of Houston System and the Texas Tech University System would benefit from the “Permanent University Fund II” as envisioned by Rep. Carol Alvarado, a Houston Democrat and a UH graduate. Representatives did not vote on the resolution.
A portion of money in the existing Permanent University Fund — a state-owned investment fund that collects royalties from oil and gas leases — would finance the second fund.
The University of Houston System has long attempted to gain access to the fund, which right now distributes money only to the UT System and the Texas A&M System. UH has said that being able to dip into that money would level the playing field between Texas’s universities and would help UH join the Association of American Universities, an elite group whose membership includes Texas A&M and UT-Austin.
Texas A&M and UT leaders said Wednesday that widening the fund would be disastrous, connecting the success of the two flagship institutions with the state’s economic success.
“You’re going to destroy two great AAU universities and bring them down to make everybody equal,” Texas A&M Chancellor John Sharp said, referring to the association.
“Do not jeopardize the excellence of UT Austin and Texas A&M,” UT Board Chairman Paul Foster said.
Lawmakers on Wednesday morning acknowledged the disparities in funding but were wary of harming Texas A&M and UT-Austin.
Alvarado from the outset said she did not expect a vote on the resolution and sought to “start a discussion” solely.
Still, she criticized higher education leaders for allowing politics to overtly influence decisions that would better the state as a whole.
“We’re all in this together. We are a better state when our higher ed institutions are all funded sufficiently,” she said.
Alvarado urged lawmakers to continue the discussion on the Permanent University Fund’s beneficiaries in next year’s interim between legislative sessions.