SEMO's financial outlook has turned around since January

Months of compromise and conversations over possible budget cuts for fiscal year 2013 are coming to a close at Southeast Missouri State University, but officials are still looking ahead cautiously.

Since January, the university's financial outlook has done something of a turnaround. Gov. Jay Nixon's recommended cuts to higher education as part of an effort to balance the state's budget weren't supported by the legislature, and Southeast now expects to receive around $400,000 more this fiscal year than in 2012.

The university will receive $43,254,606 if no withholdings are placed on state expenditures, up from $42,886,095. Still, the university may not receive that amount if state revenue does not meet projections, said Kathy Mangels, Southeast's vice president of finance and administration.

University officials likely won't know until after the first of the year if all the funds approved by Nixon will reach the bank. Some funds included in appropriations are "one-time" money, like a portion of the state's higher education budget that will come from a settlement with mortgage lenders. Other funds will depend on revenue from the state lottery.

"We're all going to be watching to see if revenues match expectations or whether we might have withholdings as the year goes on," Mangels said.

In all, Nixon approved $707.8 million for the state's four-year institutions in fiscal 2013. Southeast receives the fourth-largest amount of state funding of 10 four-year institutions, following the University of Missouri, Missouri State University and the University of Central Missouri.

Missouri's budget director estimated at a retreat hosted by the Missouri Department of Higher Education earlier this month that $207 million of the state's $24 billion budget signed by Nixon last Friday is one-time funds. A federal stimulus program to stabilize state budgets provided much of one-time funds in Missouri's 2012 budget; those funds totaled about $650 million.

Southeast did experience some withholdings last year. Withholdings resulted in an average decrease of 7 percent for four-year institutions when combined with cuts to base budgets.

This spring, the university's board of regents approved raising tuition 3 percent for in-state students and 6 percent for out-of-state students to increase revenue and approved measures to save money based on a proposed budget with an 8 percent reduction from fiscal year 2012.

Southeast was facing a 12.5 percent cut to its base budget in January following an announcement by Nixon addressing a possible $500 million shortfall in the state's fiscal 2013 budget. Cuts were scaled back after the governor said $40 million would be added back to higher education budgets from the mortgage settlement, and the state legislature later restored funding equal to 2012 levels plus an additional $885,000 for the university after a compromise over an earmark was reached.

"Equity adjustments" helped lawmakers determine Southeast should receive the largest share of $2 million earmarked for the university by House Speaker Steven Tilley, R-Perryville, combined with $1 million more that became available after cuts elsewhere in the state budget. Legislators and university officials said per-student funding rates at Southeast and other universities were too low.

Southeast will end up with around $3.7 million than was expected when tuition was raised and other measures were approved, Mangels said. The unanticipated funds will go toward equipment for academic departments, possibly some deferred maintenance projects and a "rainy day fund."

"We weren't able to fund all the projects we needed to when we did bonds, so we will look at if there are some critical maintenance and repair projects," Mangels said. "And then, frankly, we'll just hold the rest of it at our contingency in case there are withholdings."

eragan@semissourian.com

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