UW-MADISON TAKES BIGGEST BUDGET HIT

Madison to take $52.98 million cut; formula aids UWM.

The final budget numbers that University of Wisconsin campuses have been dreading for months were released late Monday, prompting a mad scramble on campuses to figure out the winners and losers.

UW-Madison, UW-Eau Claire, UW-La Crosse and UW-Oshkosh will all fare worse under a somewhat arbitrary, need-based formula being used for the first time to distribute funding to campuses. The other four-year campuses — Milwaukee, Whitewater, Stevens Point, Stout, River Falls, Superior, Green Bay, Parkside and Platteville — will fare better than they would have if the formula traditionally used to

divvy up state money had been followed.

The funding distribution announced Monday was unusually complicated.

The starting point was the $150 million cut that Gov. Scott Walker proposed in January as part of his state budget. In May, the Joint Finance Committee of the Republican-led Legislature reduced the cut to $125 million and directed the UW System to distribute the “saved” $25 million to campuses based on need. Further, UW System President Ray Cross announced a few months ago that $20 million in existing cash balances would be distributed

among campuses as one-time assistance, again based on how well UW System officials thought each school could absorb and manage state budget cuts.

On Monday, campuses found out something their chancellors had been told last week — how a new, arbitrary formula would shake out in each location. Some of the numbers were included in materials advancing a UW System Board of Regents meeting Thursday in Madison. But one piece — how the $20 million would be divided — was not released until late in the day after the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel specifically

requested it.

The regents will approve a budget for fiscal 2015-’16 during the Thursday meeting.

Cross acknowledged to reporters in a teleconference Monday that the distribution of the $25 million and $20 million ended up being somewhat arbitrary, despite efforts to come up with a new need-based formula.

Looking only at the $125 million cut, the biggest loser was UW-Madison, which under the traditional formula would have taken a $47 million cut, instead of the $52.98 million cut determined under need-based distribution. UW-Eau Claire, UW-La

Crosse and UW-Oshkosh also lost, but their adjustments weren’t as severe. UWM was among the winners because it got relief to offset enrollment declines. UW-Superior and UW-Parkside also were among the biggest winners of need-based assistance because they both have structural deficits.

As for the $25 million put back by the Joint Finance Committee, UWM is expected to get the largest share: $4.5 million vs. $4 million for UW-Madison. UW-Parkside and UW-Superior are to receive the next highest amounts: $1.94 million and $1.76 million, respectively.

UWM also got the largest share of the $20 million in one-time cash balances held by the UW System.

To help manage budget cuts, voluntary early retirement buyouts are in play at many campuses, as are layoffs. All campuses that have cash balances also will continue spending them down. The balances caused an uproar in the Legislature when they were revealed in 2012.

UWM is drawing down its cash balances by $30.9 million, while UW-Madison is putting $10 million from its cash balances toward the 2015-’16 fiscal year.

Tuition was among the most controversial of the cash balances. The UW Sys-

tem has spent down tuition balances by roughly 20% since the 2013-’14 balances were reported — from $395 million in 2013-’14 to the $316.35 million estimated ending balance for 2014-’15.

The annual operating budget for the UW System is based on the state’s 2015-’17 biennial budget, which has not yet been finalized.

The governor and Joint Finance Committee both held firmly to earlier calls for a tuition freeze for the next two years for undergraduate resident students. Tuition for resident undergrads has been frozen the past two years.

At its April meeting, the regents approved nonresident and graduate tuition increases for several campuses.