Topeka ? An effort to withdraw Kansas University’s classified employees from the state’s civil service system suffered a setback Wednesday that likely would delay possible implementation by a year.

The Kansas Board of Regents unanimously voted to study the issue instead of forwarding it to the Legislature for approval. KU administrators had hoped to gain legislative approval this session.

“This removes it from this legislative session, effectively,” said Kathy Jansen, president of KU’s Classified Senate. “We’ll just keep working on it. We need to let (regents) feel more comfortable with it.”

The proposal would create a new designation of KU employee, “university support staff,” that would have its pay and benefits system administered at the KU campus instead of by the Department of Administration in Topeka.

The plan would retain benefits such as health insurance, retirement, grievance procedures and vacation time. Two-thirds of money available for pay increases would be given to employees who have a “satisfactory” evaluation, with the other given on a merit basis determined by supervisors.

Currently, the Legislature determines salary increases for civil service employees.

KU’s classified employees voted on the issue in May 2003, with the result ending in a 545-545 tie. Another vote in October had 623 votes in favor of leaving the system and 532 against.

KU was asking regents to support a law that would allow individual campuses to decide whether their employees should withdraw from civil service.

Several regents weren’t ready to make a decision.

“I need some additional information before I can decide on this,” said Regent Donna Shank, of Liberal. “It has broad implications. I’m uncomfortable with the narrow margin of the vote. That gives me discomfort as well.”

Regent Nelson Galle, of Manhattan, said he thought having administrators on each campus determine pay raises made sense, considering the move toward “block grant” budgeting that allows university officials to determine how their money is spent.

“As I come to understand the mentality of block grants and becoming more autonomous organizations, I suggest this is something we need to take seriously in the future,” he said. “It’s compatible for where we want to get and where we want to be.”

KU Chancellor Robert Hemenway said he still was confident regents would sign off on the plan, though probably not for this legislative session.

“I interpret the board’s action as recognizing something that is well-worth the regents’ study,” he said. “We would have liked to have gotten started with it, but this way we’ll take a step back and think about it for a subsequent year.”