News

Trustee: If C&D fail, Metro faces 'whack'

Opponents say schools should cut spending

By Brad Riggin
rigginb@mscd.edu

Colorado voters will decide the availability and quality of higher education in the state when they cast their votes for Referendums C and D this November, according to several higher education officials.

"This is a critical issue," said Bruce Benson, president of the Metro Board of Trustees. "Who knows what we will have to end up cutting. But, if these (referendums) don't pass, we are going to have to really whack the heck out of that place (Metro)," Benson said.

Benson is one of three chairmen of the campaign supporting the referendums.

Ethan Eilon of the Independence Institute, a free-market think tank opposing C and D, said the referendums do nothing to fix the real problem with state government, which is spending.

"There are better ways to solve the crunch in the budget," Eilon said. "Lawmakers would rather go to the taxpayers for help than fix the spending problem in state government."

If passed, Referendum C would eliminate, for five years, the spending limits placed on the state government by the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights. This would allow the legislature to spend $3.7 billion that would normally be refunded to taxpayers. A portion of those funds would be earmarked for higher education.

Referendum D borrows against money provided by Referendum C, which would be earmarked for urgent road and school construction.

Taxpayers will lose about $500 in refunds over five years if the referendums are approved.

TABOR, a constitutional amendment approved by voters in 1992, places caps on government spending and requires the government to refund to taxpayers any revenue taken in over the cap.

The problem with TABOR, also known as the "ratchet effect," began with the recession around five years ago. The state realized a drop in revenues from previous years due to the slumping economy. Under TABOR, new spending caps were established based on the new, lower revenues of the recession.

If the referendums fail, the legislature would have to cut an estimated $365 million from the state budget, said Jason Hopfer, spokesman for Rick O'Donnell, the Executive Director for the Colorado Commission on Higher Education. At least some, and maybe most, of the cuts will come from higher education, Hopfer said.

"We (CCHE) don't know where those cuts will come from, but higher education is the easiest place to take from," he said.

The state is mandated to spend a large part of the budget on K-12 education, because of Amendment 23, and Medicaid. That leaves little money for discretionary spending. Higher education is one of the largest recipients of discretionary funds and therefore easiest to cut, Hopfer said.

Amendment 23, approved by voters in 2000, increases school spending annually by 1 percent over inflation and enrollment growth. The mandated increases have made school spending a large portion of the state budget, forcing cuts in other areas.

Eilon said the referendums postpone problems with the budget, instead of fixing them.

"If voters decide to give the legislature another $6 billion, then the legislature will be off of the hook for another five years and won't have to fix the real problems of Amendment 23 and Medicaid taking up too much of the budget," Eilon said.

Amendment 23 and Medicaid currently comprise around two-thirds of the state budget.

The referendums have split Republicans in the state. The Auraria College Republicans have not taken a stand on C and D because of the division in the party, said Anne Clodfelter, president of the group.

"We have not taken a stand because they (Referendums C and D) are too divisive, there are a lot of Republicans for it and a lot against it," Clodfelter said.

Colorado Gov.. Bill Owens, a Republican, supports the referendums. He said in a news release that the state will be forced to cut $400 million from the budget next year and the cuts will come from areas that have already suffered significant reductions since 2001.

Higher education has been cut by 20 percent over the last four years and will likely be one of the areas cut again if the referendums fail, Owens said.

"Put together, both measures allow Colorado to invest in higher education, maintain our prison system and provide all the other necessary services that Coloradans rightfully expect from government, without raising taxes," he said.

Benson said that after talking to the governor Wednesday, he learned that the College Opportunity Fund would probably be cut in half, from $2400 per student annually to $1200, if the referendums fail.

"That translates to $18 million in cuts," Benson said. "Therefore, we can either cut down the size of the school or we can raise tuition and that's really what it comes down to."

He said he does not know if he can justify cutting the size of the school.

"We are the school of opportunity and we need to take the people that really need that opportunity, but we might have to cut the size of the school," Benson said.

The Board does not have a contingency plan in place if the referendums fail, but they are looking at all possible scenarios, he said.

"We will have to go out and find private money and do whatever we have to to keep this place running," Benson said.

Tuition increases are also likely for CCD students next year if the referendums fail.

Doug Hawk, manager of communications for the Colorado Community College System, said the current funding crisis threatens the opportunity for community college students.

"We have reached a point where, if community colleges are asked to do more with even less, it will compromise our ability to deliver on a promise of education and economic availability," Hawk said.

Over the last four years, state funding for community colleges has decreased nearly 16 percent while, at the same time, enrollment has increased 18 percent, he said.

Colorado community colleges are coming off of their largest tuition increase in years-8.9 percent. The Office of State Planning and Budget told the community college system that in the worst-case scenario, funds for the system would drop from around $106 million to around $34 million, Hawk said.

"If we were to make up that dramatic of a cut, it would require us to raise tuition from $72.75 per credit hour to $186.82 per credit hour," he said.

The community college system is also without a contingency plan if the referendums fail.

"We haven't discussed that at all," Hawk said. "We are in a wait-and-see mode."

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[an error occurred while processing this directive]	Volume 28, Issue 08, October 13, 2005 News Trustee: If C&D fail, Metro faces 'whack' Opponents say schools should cut spending By Brad Riggin rigginb@mscd.edu Colorado voters will decide the availability and quality of higher education in the state when they cast their votes for Referendums C and D this November, according to several higher education officials. "This is a critical issue," said Bruce Benson, president of the Metro Board of Trustees. "Who knows what we will have to end up cutting. But, if these (referendums) don't pass, we are going to have to really whack the heck out of that place (Metro)," Benson said. Benson is one of three chairmen of the campaign supporting the referendums. Ethan Eilon of the Independence Institute, a free-market think tank opposing C and D, said the referendums do nothing to fix the real problem with state government, which is spending. "There are better ways to solve the crunch in the budget," Eilon said. "Lawmakers would rather go to the taxpayers for help than fix the spending problem in state government." If passed, Referendum C would eliminate, for five years, the spending limits placed on the state government by the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights. This would allow the legislature to spend $3.7 billion that would normally be refunded to taxpayers. A portion of those funds would be earmarked for higher education. Referendum D borrows against money provided by Referendum C, which would be earmarked for urgent road and school construction. Taxpayers will lose about $500 in refunds over five years if the referendums are approved. TABOR, a constitutional amendment approved by voters in 1992, places caps on government spending and requires the government to refund to taxpayers any revenue taken in over the cap. The problem with TABOR, also known as the "ratchet effect," began with the recession around five years ago. The state realized a drop in revenues from previous years due to the slumping economy. Under TABOR, new spending caps were established based on the new, lower revenues of the recession. If the referendums fail, the legislature would have to cut an estimated $365 million from the state budget, said Jason Hopfer, spokesman for Rick O'Donnell, the Executive Director for the Colorado Commission on Higher Education. At least some, and maybe most, of the cuts will come from higher education, Hopfer said. "We (CCHE) don't know where those cuts will come from, but higher education is the easiest place to take from," he said. The state is mandated to spend a large part of the budget on K-12 education, because of Amendment 23, and Medicaid. That leaves little money for discretionary spending. Higher education is one of the largest recipients of discretionary funds and therefore easiest to cut, Hopfer said. Amendment 23, approved by voters in 2000, increases school spending annually by 1 percent over inflation and enrollment growth. The mandated increases have made school spending a large portion of the state budget, forcing cuts in other areas. Eilon said the referendums postpone problems with the budget, instead of fixing them. "If voters decide to give the legislature another $6 billion, then the legislature will be off of the hook for another five years and won't have to fix the real problems of Amendment 23 and Medicaid taking up too much of the budget," Eilon said. Amendment 23 and Medicaid currently comprise around two-thirds of the state budget. The referendums have split Republicans in the state. The Auraria College Republicans have not taken a stand on C and D because of the division in the party, said Anne Clodfelter, president of the group. "We have not taken a stand because they (Referendums C and D) are too divisive, there are a lot of Republicans for it and a lot against it," Clodfelter said. Colorado Gov.. Bill Owens, a Republican, supports the referendums. He said in a news release that the state will be forced to cut $400 million from the budget next year and the cuts will come from areas that have already suffered significant reductions since 2001. Higher education has been cut by 20 percent over the last four years and will likely be one of the areas cut again if the referendums fail, Owens said. "Put together, both measures allow Colorado to invest in higher education, maintain our prison system and provide all the other necessary services that Coloradans rightfully expect from government, without raising taxes," he said. Benson said that after talking to the governor Wednesday, he learned that the College Opportunity Fund would probably be cut in half, from $2400 per student annually to $1200, if the referendums fail. "That translates to $18 million in cuts," Benson said. "Therefore, we can either cut down the size of the school or we can raise tuition and that's really what it comes down to." He said he does not know if he can justify cutting the size of the school. "We are the school of opportunity and we need to take the people that really need that opportunity, but we might have to cut the size of the school," Benson said. The Board does not have a contingency plan in place if the referendums fail, but they are looking at all possible scenarios, he said. "We will have to go out and find private money and do whatever we have to to keep this place running," Benson said. Tuition increases are also likely for CCD students next year if the referendums fail. Doug Hawk, manager of communications for the Colorado Community College System, said the current funding crisis threatens the opportunity for community college students. "We have reached a point where, if community colleges are asked to do more with even less, it will compromise our ability to deliver on a promise of education and economic availability," Hawk said. Over the last four years, state funding for community colleges has decreased nearly 16 percent while, at the same time, enrollment has increased 18 percent, he said. Colorado community colleges are coming off of their largest tuition increase in years-8.9 percent. The Office of State Planning and Budget told the community college system that in the worst-case scenario, funds for the system would drop from around $106 million to around $34 million, Hawk said. "If we were to make up that dramatic of a cut, it would require us to raise tuition from $72.75 per credit hour to $186.82 per credit hour," he said. The community college system is also without a contingency plan if the referendums fail. "We haven't discussed that at all," Hawk said. "We are in a wait-and-see mode."
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Volume 28, Issue 08, October 13, 2005

News

Trustee: If C&D fail, Metro faces 'whack'

Opponents say schools should cut spending

By Brad Riggin rigginb@mscd.edu

By Brad Riggin
rigginb@mscd.edu