West Burlington, IA – President Beverly Simone says SCC has limited travel, reduced mileage reimbursements, and halted non-instructional equipment purchases to make up for a 1.5% cut to its current budget.
Dr. Simone says the news out of Des Moines is that things will be much worse for community colleges next year. She says, "Everything we are being told right now is that we will not get any additional money and that we may have 6.5%-8.5% total cuts for next year."
Simone says that works out to more than $1-million for SCC.
Simone says state lawmakers are telling the community colleges that their funding has been boosted in recent years. She says, despite the increases, the schools are still below past funding levels.
Simone says one concern is that 4-year, private colleges appear to receive more state aid than community colleges.
SCC's certified budget for next year is nearly $35-million. The document, which simply defines the college's spending authority, has been approved by SCC's Board of Trustees.
Simone says discussions are underway as to how SCC will deal with the projected cuts within that spending plan. It's unclear when specific line-items will be discussed.