By Daniel Perry - The Monitor - June 21, 2007
McALLEN — South Texas College leaders want to send a message to Gov. Rick Perry that his decision to cut off $154 million in health insurance funding for the state’scommunity colleges is a bad idea.
College trustees approved Thursday night a resolution sponsored by the Texas Association of Community Colleges objecting to Perry’s line item veto in the two-year state budget going into effect in September.
Trustees also decided to write their own resolution against the cuts and ask area cities, economic development corporations and chambers of commerce to lend their support.
“We should not be bashful to tell the governor that what he did was wrong,” board member Mike Allen said.
College President Shirley Reed said she wanted the college to work with Perry and area legislators rather than burn bridges with them regarding the issue. The state requires community colleges to pay all medical insurance premiums, but in the past this has traditionally been handled with Legislature-approved funding.
In the present biennium the college received more than $7.7 million from the state for health coverage. The college is estimated to get $3.9 million for the 2007-08 and 2008-09 academic years, but must find a way to fund the remaining $4 million the state is taking away.
Reed said the money was in the governor’s proposed budget when the legislative session began in January. And the funding stayed in the Senate and House versions throughout the session.
“Now what happened between January and June, I don’t know,” Reed said. “I believe there is a difference in philosophy (between the governor and the community colleges). And with community colleges, we are not addressed in state statutes very well. Sometimes the law applies to us and universities, sometimes to school districts and us, or specifically us.”
Randy Jarvis, a sociology instructor, said he felt “blindsided” when he heard earlier this week about Perry’s funding rejection. Jarvis said the funding cut would be easier to accept if the state were in a dire financial crunch.
“It’s obvious it will fall on the backs of our students,” he said.
Jarvis said the Faculty Senate would take the issue up when it reconvenes in August after its summer break.
College leaders have some tough decisions to make in the near future if Perry’s decision stands.
Reed said tuition could be increased for the 2008-09 academic year, but this could hurt student enrollment and mean less money comes from the state through funding formulas. There is also a chance some services and programs could be cut to save money.
She said the college could ask voters in Hidalgo and Starr counties to approve increasing the current tax rate of 0.11 cents per $100 of assessed property value. “I do not see that happening,” Reed said.
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