Harrisburg – The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) would receive a base appropriation of $498.5 million next year under Gov. Edward G. Rendell’s proposed 2009-10 Commonwealth budget announced today.

The governor’s proposal would provide PASSHE with the same level of funding as was appropriated for the current fiscal year. Governor Rendell in October asked PASSHE’s Board of Governors to set aside as much as $22 million of the 2008-09 appropriation to help the state through its current economic crisis. Commonwealth revenues are expected to be down by as much as $2.3 billion by the end of the fiscal year on June 30.

PASSHE would receive a total of $519.2 million in state funding in 2009-10 to support its basic operations and a variety of special projects. The governor also said the state would provide $130 million in capital funding to PASSHE next year for campus construction projects, double the amount the System has been receiving in recent years.

As was announced earlier, Governor Rendell also proposed a new tuition assistance program for students who attend PASSHE universities and community colleges in Pennsylvania. The program, which would require legislative approval, would enable students with the fewest financial resources to attend a PASSHE university for $1,000 a year, which would include the cost of tuition, fees, room and board and textbooks. Most students whose families earn up to $100,000 a year would be eligible for some financial assistance once the program were fully implemented in four years.

“We are grateful to the governor for his support during these difficult times,” said Board of Governors Chairman Kenneth M. Jarin. “This will be a challenging budget for everyone. We will do our best to continue to offer our students a high quality, affordable education, given the resources we will have available.”

Tuition at the 14 PASSHE universities is the lowest among all four-year colleges and universities in the Commonwealth. Significant efforts to control costs and improve operating efficiency have enabled PASSHE to keep annual tuition increases in each of the last four years below the rate of inflation. Over the last five years, PASSHE has had the lowest overall tuition and fee increases among all public college and university systems in the nation.

While keeping costs down, PASSHE universities have been able to enhance academic quality, as evidenced by an increasing number of professionally accredited programs offered by the institutions. The schools also have added about 70 new programs since 2001, nearly half of which have been in the science, mathematics and technology-related fields and healthcare, including nursing. Meanwhile, the universities have eliminated about 130 low-demand programs.

“We are seeking to meet the always-changing demands of the Commonwealth in our academic offerings,” said Chancellor Dr. John C. Cavanaugh. “PASSHE can play a major role in the revitalization of Pennsylvania’s economy. We are prepared to work closely with the administration and the General Assembly to help ensure our universities have the resources they need to meet this important challenge.”

PASSHE’s Board of Governors in October submitted a 2009-10 appropriations request totaling $552.6 million. The request includes $526.9 million in basic operating funds, an increase of $28.4 million, or 5.7 percent, over PASSHE’s current base appropriation from the Commonwealth – not taking into account the expected $22 million reduction that also was agreed to by the Board in October.

The funding would support PASSHE’s proposed Fiscal Year 2009-10 operating budget of about $1.4 billion. The annual state appropriation provides about one-third of the funds needed to operate PASSHE universities. Student tuition and fees cover most of the rest.

PASSHE’s operating costs are expected to increase by about $69.2 million, or 5.1 percent, next year. Employee salaries and benefits will account for most of that increase, growing by about $54.4 million combined. About three-fourths of PASSHE’s operating budget goes to cover personnel costs.

Utility costs also are projected to increase by about $2.5 million next year, a total offset somewhat by energy conservation efforts. Other increases are anticipated in the cost of materials and supplies and in building maintenance. Some cost increases will be mitigated through the use of strategic sourcing, which combines the purchasing power of PASSHE’s 14 universities to obtain better prices on the purchase of services, supplies and equipment.

In addition to approving the 2009-10 base appropriation request in October, the Board of Governors also approved separate funding requests totaling about $25.7 million to support a variety of special initiatives, including in the areas of performance funding, economic development, teacher education and diversity and equal opportunity efforts across the System.

The budget process will continue later this month with the House and Senate appropriations committees holding a series of public hearings on the spending plan. The Commonwealth budget must be approved by June 30 in order to take effect July 1, the start of the next fiscal year.

Those discussions likely will include Governor Rendell’s proposed emergency tuition assistance program, which would provide an estimated $128 million in grants next year to first-time college students enrolled at any of the community colleges in Pennsylvania or any of the 14 PASSHE universities. The program once fully implemented would benefit as many as 175,000 college-going students in Pennsylvania, at an annual estimated cost of $534 million.

“This program would benefit tremendously students, their families and the entire Commonwealth,” Dr. Cavanaugh said. “Students would be able to receive a higher education without worrying about how to pay for it or about leaving college with a huge debt. The Commonwealth would benefit from a better-educated workforce. It’s a win-win for everyone.”

The program would have to be approved soon in order to be implemented this fall. Because of the financial hardships many families are facing as a result of the struggling economy, it could play a key role in the decisions they make about sending their sons and daughters to college.

“The sooner this program can be enacted, the better,” Dr. Cavanaugh said.

Now in its 25^th year, the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education is the largest provider of higher education in the Commonwealth, with more than 112,500 students. The 14 PASSHE universities offer degree and certificate programs in more than 120 areas of study. Approximately 405,000 PASSHE alumni live and work in Pennsylvania.

The state-owned universities are Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania. PASSHE also operates branch campuses in Clearfield, Freeport, Oil City and Punxsutawney and several regional centers, including the Dixon University Center in Harrisburg.