MU chancellor voices concerns about proposed funding cuts

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- The University of Missouri's flagship campus in Columbia is raising concerns that proposed cuts will make it more difficult to meet goals that include paying for new research and academic buildings.

On Monday, Gov. Eric Greitens proposed cutting 10 percent from current appropriations for state colleges and universities and putting 10 percent of the remaining funds into a pool that only would be distributed if performance measures are met. That would put more than $80 million of the appropriation at risk for the four-campus University of Missouri system.

About 40 percent to 45 percent of the system's academic spending goes to the Columbia campus.

If approved, it would be the smallest state appropriation since 1998, the Columbia Daily Tribune reported.

"We only saw so much last night," University chancellor Alexander Cartwright said Tuesday. "But I have concerns about our ability to really be able to do all the things we would like to do going forward."

The cuts mean a stronger push this year to repeal or revise the state tuition-cap law that limits increases to the rate of inflation.

"We need to be thinking about how do we have the resources needed to deliver on a high-quality education for the citizens of Missouri and beyond," Cartwright said.

The budget plan proposed by Greitens also eliminates funding for medical education in Springfield, funding to expand the Missouri University of Science and Technology's program for cooperative engineering with Missouri State University and several other initiatives.

"We are going to have to look at and see how we can deliver on those programs, not having the resources needed," Cartwright said.