Topeka — The chance that lawmakers will bridge funding gaps in Gov. Bill Graves' budget for Kansas University and other state colleges appeared slim Wednesday.
House budget writers complained about Graves' proposed budget for the fiscal year starting July 1, but didn't do anything about it, except to express hope that the state will somehow collect more revenue.
Referring to the shortfalls, Rep. Clark Shultz, R-Lindsborg, and chairman of a subcommittee that analyzed the higher education budget, said, "It is a large issue but at the same time we have to concede that there isn't money in the budget for that."
The full House Appropriations Committee adopted the subcommittee's budget report, which contained several complaints about Graves' spending plan, but didn't propose kicking in any extra funds.
Instead, like their Senate counterparts, the committee members said they hoped that during the final budget deliberations next month, more money can be diverted to higher education.
But Graves' budget director, Duane Goossen, said that isn't likely to happen.
A final revenue estimate used as the basis for the budget will be announced April 4, and it appears the state is going to run short of an earlier estimate.
That means Graves' budget might be bigger than the final revenue estimate allows, Goossen said. If that's the case, then cuts will have to be made.
"There are a lot of projects the governor would have loved to have supported," but the revenue wasn't available, Goossen said.
Graves has proposed spending $1.34 billion on higher education, a 0.6 percent increase from the current fiscal year, according to the Legislative Research Department.
The proposal includes money for an average 6 percent pay raise for faculty.
But higher education officials, including those at KU, say that increase is more than wiped out in other areas where Graves shorts state universities.
Under Graves' proposal, base budgets for the six state universities would be cut $6.1 million. Graves also gave low-wage employees a pay raise, but didn't provide any funds for the raise, failed to help out with soaring utility costs and canceled a state appropriation for a 2-1 match of technology fees paid by students.
Higher education officials have lobbied Graves and the Legislature to restore these funds, but so far nothing has come of it.
"We're seeing a hardening of positions on both sides," said Rep. Rocky Nichols of Topeka, the ranking Democrat on the Appropriations Committee.
"Quite frankly, without money on the table ... all we can do is bring this to the committee's attention," he said.
And one possible source of new funds for higher education a refund from the Internal Revenue Service was downplayed by lawmakers.
"We can't bank on anything in the immediate future," said Appropriations Chairman Kenny Wilk, a Lansing Republican.
An ongoing IRS audit at KU has identified the potential overpayment of Social Security taxes for participants in the Kansas Board of Regents retirement program at the six universities. As of now, the IRS hasn't ruled on whether Social Security payments were required.
"We are, quite frankly, awaiting an opinion from the IRS. We all know that expediting the IRS is somewhat challenging," Wilk said.
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