CAPE UNIVERSITY COULD FACE $7.5 MILLION BUDGET CUT

Southeast Missouri State University officials might have to cut $7.5 million from the school's $108 million budget.

That assumes Gov. Bob Holden withholds another 15 percent of state funding from the school for fiscal 2002, said Art Wallhausen, associate to the president at Southeast. The new fiscal year begins Sunday.

Southeast had hoped to receive $48.8 million in state funding after the usual 3 percent withholding. Missouri's governors traditionally have withheld 3 percent of the appropriations funds from state agencies and colleges to guard against lower-than-expected revenue or unforeseen costs.

But this year, public colleges and agencies are bracing for larger withholdings to address the estimated $300 million shortfall in the state budget.

Missouri Department of Higher Education officials have asked all public four-year and two-year colleges to look at what actions they would take to save money should the governor withhold an additional 7 or 15 percent above the standard 3 percent withholding.

Wallhausen said an added 7 percent withholding would force the university to trim $3.5 million from the budget. Every 1 percent withholding amounts to about a half-million-dollar cut in state funding for the Cape Girardeau university, he said.

Looking to cut costs

Joe Martin, associate commissioner for fiscal and legislative affairs with the Department of Higher Education in Jefferson City, said Friday that the department is looking at the 7 percent and 15 percent withholdings as the most likely possibilities. It could be mid-July before the governor announces the withholdings.

Martin said college presidents understand the state's financial constraints and realize they must cut expenses.

Southeast already is looking to cut costs.

Acting on the recommendation of Southeast's Budget Review committee, the Board of Regents on Thursday held off granting pay raises for the university's 1,200 employees.

School officials said funding cuts could make it impossible for the university to grant even the 2 percent raises that had been planned.

Keeping salaries at the existing level would save the university about $1 million, school officials said.

University President Dr. Ken Dobbins said Southeast may impose a hiring freeze and postpone equipment purchases to make ends meet. Students could face a midyear fee hike, he said.

Avoiding student fee hike

Wallhausen said the university will outline its options to the Department of Higher Education next week.

Faculty Senate President William Eddleman said he and other members of the Budget Review Committee felt the school administration had to at least temporarily cancel pay raises in an effort to avoid hiking student fees.

"We could have recommended raising fees, but we didn't want to do that," said Eddleman, who teaches biology at the school.

He and other members of the Budget Review Committee made their last-minute recommendation to Dobbins in a meeting Wednesday which was called to consider the worsening budget crisis.

"I don't think anybody is ever happy about not getting a raise, but it is just going to have to be that way in view of the budget," he said.

Eddleman said he and other employees at the school hope the withholding won't be as large as projected and the university will be able to raise pay later in the year.