Greetings Colleagues,
Last month, the Higher Education Appropriation bill was signed into law by Governor Little. The FY2023 budget for Idaho State University includes a 5% CEC (change in employee compensation), health insurance premium increases, one-time funding for a forensic pathology lab, and ongoing funding for nuclear academic programs. It also includes a “fund shift” allocation for the first time since 2008. The fund shift covers CEC costs for all appropriated positions, and reduces the burden for ISU by approximately $1.2 million.
We are presenting proposed student tuition and fee increases for FY2023 at next week’s State Board of Education meeting, which will be held on April 20 and 21. While holding base undergraduate tuition flat for the third consecutive year, we are proposing modest increases to the Student Activity Fee to support the University Health Center, Counseling Services, Student Union Operations, and other essential student services and activities. These programs do not receive general appropriations and need fees to cover multiple years of increasing expenses and inflation. We are also proposing increases to several professional fees based on market analysis, CEC, and capital equipment needs at the program level.
After incorporating these updates into our FY2023 forecast, we are projecting a deficit of approximately $3.92 million, which we will cover through central reserves as we work to complete development of a comprehensive budget model for Idaho State. Our Budget Model Advisory Group will be bringing recommendations forward for this new model during the fall, in time for FY2024 implementation.
I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the significant strides we have made over the past three years in bridging our budget gap. In FY2021, our deficit was $11.7 million plus an additional $5 million in one-time rescission, leading to a difficult budget reduction exercise that impacted each and every unit across the university. In FY2022, in the midst of the pandemic and continued enrollment declines, our deficit was reduced to $5.64 million and relieved by one-time COVID relief funds.
Looking ahead to FY2023, we are starting to see growth in all enrollment sectors and have further reduced our deficit to $3.92 million. While we still have work to do to fully close the gap, we are headed in the right direction. At Leadership Council budget presentations last week, units highlighted their achievements over the past year and described the work they are doing to maximize their resources in support of continued progress and growth.
These efforts are making a real and lasting difference.
Best Regards,
––Jen
Jen Steele
Senior Associate Vice President/Chief Fiscal Officer
