Dive Summary:
- Louisiana Higher Education Commissioner Jim Purcell spoke out against Gov. Bobby Jindal's funding proposal Thursday before the state's House Appropriations Committee.
- According to Purcell, who also heads the state's Board of Regents, Jindal's budget recommendations will strip state general fund money from public colleges for the sixth year in a row in favor of uncertain financing that involves $490 million in patchwork funding, or money tied to leases, property sales, legal settlements and legislation that have yet to happen.
- Louisiana's higher education would face a 19% cut for the 2013-14 fiscal year beginning July 1 if the money fails to show up, and Appropriations Chairman Jim Fannin questioned whether it would show up quickly enough to meet colleges' expenses.
From the article:
... “How do you plan, how do you project, how do you hire faculty when you have contingent funds and non-recurring funds in a budget?” said Purcell, head of the Board of Regents.
“At the minimum, I would like to have some of this risk redistributed across all state agencies,” he told lawmakers. ...