Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education
Weekly Legislative Report
March 29, 2011
Senate restores funding for Tribal and Community Colleges
The Montana Senate yesterday restored $2.68 million of about $32 million that the House of Representatives cut from higher education’s funding request for the next two years. The restoration came in two separate motions for amendments to House Bill 2, the general state appropriations bill. Over the course of the day and late into the night, motions to restore funding to various human services and educational programs were voted down. But these two were approved for higher education:
- The first, by Sen. Ryan Zinke, proposed to maintain the state percent share for Community Colleges at the current level of 50.8%. The House of Representatives had reduced the share to 45.8%. Zinke’s motion, requiring $2,221,619 in funding over the two-year biennium, passed on a 39-11 vote.
- The second, by Sen. Augare, proposed to restore lost funding for the Tribal College Assistance Program. The program provides funding to Tribal Colleges to help cover the cost of educating non-tribal-member students. Augare’s motion, requiring $458,998 in funding over the two-year biennium, passed on a 28-22 vote.
The remainder of the Montana University System (MUS) budget emerged from yesterday’s floor action about $29 million below the executive funding request of $389 million for the next two years. The requested $389-million general fund appropriation is essentially a “status quo” budget that would allow the MUS to maintain current-level services to increasing numbers of students. The House of Representatives approved and sent to the Senate a proposed appropriation of $357 million, which is lower than current-level funding.
The Senate’s “second reading” action yesterday is subject to a final “third reading” vote of the Senate. The bill then moves back to the House, and likely to a conference committee for reconciliation of expenditure differences between the House and Senate. A conference committee would have the authority, too, to add to the funding above the levels passed thus far by either the House or the Senate. The MUS leadership is lobbying toward the latter possibility, with hope of additional restoration of funds before the Legislature adjourns.
In addition to the Community College and Tribal College priorities that were funded yesterday by the Senate, the MUS is still lobbying toward restored funding for a number of other high priorities. They include about $29 million worth of “decision packages” for programs in student access and success, scholarships, dual enrollment, inflationary costs, reinstating personnel funds (e.g., for adjunct faculty and teaching assistant fee waivers lost due to a change in state budget process), reinstating one-time-only expenditures in biodiesel research and PBS, and to meet the demands of increased student enrollment in the MUS.