Congratulations to the legislative conference committee that brought some sanity back to the Kansas Board of Regents budget before passing its recommendation to Gov. Kathleen Sebelius last week.

The revenue figures used to balance the overall budget, including a $125 million increase in funding for K-12 schools, still are open to considerable debate, but the compromise plan on the Regents budget was a huge improvement over the plan initially approved by the Kansas House.

Although the Senate had stuck pretty close to the governor’s recommendations for modest funding increases for state universities, the House had annihilated those recommendations, not only slashing state funding but even “sweeping” student tuition and fee money away from universities and into the general fund.

The plan that received final House and Senate approval and went to the governor is less than the governor’s initial request but “generally good news,” according to Regents CEO Reggie Robinson.

The universities’ base budgets were restored and the funding for the Higher Education Coordination Act remained intact, including some money for faculty salary increases. The governor had allowed for an $18 million block grant for state universities, which was reduced to $11.6 million. That amount represents a $4.9 million block grant plus $6.7 million that would help universities provide a 2.5 percent salary increase for its employees starting on Jan. 1, the same raise legislators gave to other state employees.

Universities, however, will need to come up with additional money to fund those raises for employees whose salaries are paid fully or in part by student fees. Included in that group are employees of the housing departments, parking departments and student health services.

A more rational strategy also was employed to deal with the so-called 27th pay period that occurs every 11 years under the state’s current payroll system. Rather than pulling some accounting tricks or trying to push the extra pay period into the next fiscal year, the Legislature agreed to fund the extra pay period this year to the tune of $13 million for state universities. Over the next 11 years, state universities will pay back into a salary fund that hopefully will prevent a budget crisis the next time 27 pay periods fall in a single fiscal year.

One favorable aspect of the budget compromise is that it preserves the block grant funding formula for state universities. That’s the funding model used for Washburn University and the state’s community colleges, and may help even the financial playing field for all schools in the state’s higher education system.

Overall, what looked at one point like a potential disaster for higher education in the state has had a relatively positive ending. It would be great if, when the Legislature reaches final adjournment, the same can be said about the state’s K-12 funding plan.