The compact between the University of California and Gov. Arnold
Schwarzenegger will likely reflect higher education funding for
both the May revise and the final budget, and frustrated
legislators may not have a way to oppose it.
By the terms of the agreement, the university agreed not to
fight the $372 million cut that Schwarzenegger will make to the UC
this year, and in exchange, the governor has said he will fund
enrollment growth beginning in 2005 and increase the UC’s
funding until 2010-11.
The compact will likely cover most of the higher-education
portion of the May revise, which will be released today. The revise
should clarify some important details.
The governor’s January budget proposal would have cut the
portion of student fees that go to financial aid from the
traditional 33 percent to 20 percent. The compact said financial
aid would be between 20 and 30 percent. The revise should include a
more specific determination on the level of financial aid.
The revise may also clarify the compact’s vague statement
about funding for outreach, which concerned many students and
regents. The agreement said the UC would provide $12 million in
“non-state” funding for educational outreach and that
state support for outreach would be determined through the regular
budget process.
While the revise will likely include a suggestion of what state
funding for outreach might be, the governor might keep the
politically sensitive issue as a bargaining chip by waiting until
the final budget is established over the summer to determine
outreach funding.
Some legislators were upset at being left out of the agreement.
Sens. John Vasconcellos, D-San Jose, and Jack Scott, D-Pasadena,
criticized the agreement for failing to address the UC-eligible
students who were deferred to community colleges this year.
But it may be difficult for legislators, especially Democrats
and those who support higher education, to oppose the compact.
Legislators cannot directly oppose it, because it is an agreement
between the governor and the UC that does not have any legal
standing.
Daniel Mitchell, a professor at UCLA Anderson School of
Management, said the agreement is merely a statement of intent from
the governor.
“This is not an iron-clad guarantee,” Mitchell said,
adding that the compact theoretically extends beyond
Schwarzenegger’s term as governor.
“Putting this into practice every year requires the
agreement of both the government and the Legislature,”
Mitchell said.
Though the compact is not a guarantee, Brad Hayward, a spokesman
for the UC Office of the President, said it is a statement from the
governor about the importance of higher education.
Archie Kleingartner, an Anderson professor, said though some
legislators are upset about the compact, it will be difficult for
them to oppose it and still support funding for higher
education.
“They are really in a box,” he said.
Kleingartner said legislators have few options to oppose the
deal, because they can only influence it by allocating more or less
money to the university. But if they try to allocate more funds,
the governor can veto it, which is what Kleingartner predicts the
governor would do.
“Having reached a compact with the university, why would
he want to give more money than necessary to make the university
happy?” Kleingartner asked.
The Legislature will likely not approve less money for the UC
because many legislators support higher education.
In addition, Mitchell said that legislators usually only
“tinker” with the budget because they have less
expertise than the governor’s financial advisers.