SAN DIEGO “”mdash; Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Lt. Gov. Cruz
Bustamante both made rare appearances at the UC Board of Regents
meeting Wednesday, during which the governor discussed buying out
the UC student fee increases planned for next year and the board
adopted a new salary structure for university employees.
The new structure for senior University of California employees
abolished the need for the board to approve all salaries exceeding
$168,000, as was previously required. It will allow UC President
Robert Dynes to set salaries for employees earning above $168,000
but who are not among the 32 UC employees with the highest
salaries.
The regents will place each position into a salary range
determined by the competitive market value of similar jobs. They
slotted 284 of these positions Wednesday afternoon.
The board will continue to oversee salaries for the top 32 UC
positions, including the president, vice presidents and other
high-ranking officers.
UC officials say the new structure will provide a more
accountable compensation plan because the regents will be better
able to manage overall salaries when they are not required to
approve salaries for all the estimated 800 positions exceeding
$168,000.
Regent Chairman Gerald Parsky said considering every element of
compensation for so many positions was a very difficult
process.
“We have to take into account that we can’t be or
shouldn’t be in a position of micromanaging every aspect of
the university,” Parsky said.
Though salaries for many positions could be increased by the
president without regent approval in the future, UC officials
stressed that no salaries are being increased by the actions taken
Wednesday, which merely established the salary structure.
The change in salary structure comes amid criticism of UC
compensation practices that stemmed from news reports alleging the
UC failed to include $871 million in bonuses and other forms of
compensation in a September 2005 salary report.
Various California lawmakers have expressed concern about the
allegations, particularly at a time when student fees have been
increasing rapidly.
In early January, state Sen. Jeff Denham (R-Merced) introduced
Senate Bill 1117, which would compel the UC to change its
compensation policies. This week, the Joint Legislative Audit
Committee voted to conduct a “comprehensive review” of
those same practices.
Throughout the meeting, the regents expressed a desire for more
public and accountable compensation practices.
Parsky said the regents agreed to conduct a comprehensive audit
of these practices for the top 32 UC positions over the past 10
years and that the board will welcome the legislature to conduct
its own audit.
“We take this very seriously. We’re not paying lip
service in this area. This is extremely important to the
regents,” Parsky said.
A special committee on compensation was also formed by a vote of
the board of regents. Parsky said the committee will allow the
regents to ensure prompt and clear disclosure of compensation
actions and provide regular consistent monitoring of compensation
practice.
“I think all of us are committed to strong oversight and
accountability in the area of compensation,” Parsky said.
“(Forming the committee) is an important step in carrying out
our overall principles.”
Dynes said that with high-level vacancies to fill, including the
UCLA chancellor position, the challenges of keeping the quality of
the UC were constant. Though the university must provide
competitive compensation packages to help maintain quality, it must
also do a better job of making its compensation practices
transparent to the public, Dynes said.
“We must hold the university of California in trust for
the citizens of California, and we must earn their
confidence,” he said.
Attending his first regents meeting as the ex officio president
of the board, Schwarzenegger emphasized his commitment to providing
affordable education.
“I want to take advantage of our economic recovery and
help the students. They should share the California comeback as
much as anyone else,” Schwarzenegger said.
Last November the regents voted to increase student fees for
2006-2007 on the condition that the increases would be reversed if
the state can provide enough funding for the university.
Earlier this month, the governor allocated $75 million in
funding to the UC to prevent undergraduate, graduate and
professional student fees from increasing. At the meeting,
Schwarzenegger stressed the importance of funding education.
“For California to achieve its potential, we must make
sure that our young people achieve their potential,” he
said.
Parsky said the governor’s buyout of the UC fee increases
shows that the regents did the right thing when they approved a
conditional fee increase that could be rescinded instead of a
blanket fee increase that would not be reversed.
“On the part of the regents, it was a positive way to
address an issue,” Parksy said.
While both students and regents thanked the governor for
blocking fee increases for next year, some voiced concern about the
need for long-term solutions to the budget problems the university
has faced in recent years.
Regent Judith Hopkinson said the regents cannot lose sight of
the long-term budget problems the university still faces.
UC Student Association Chairwoman Felicia Cruz said the
students’ fight for UC accessibility will not end with any
one-time allocation of funds.
“We need a plan that doesn’t just stop the bleeding,
but paves the way for the future of the University of
California,” she said.
Some regents were also concerned with the lack of funding in the
governor’s proposed budget for academic preparation programs
targeted at bringing diversity to the UC system by providing
outreach to K-12 students.
Ex officio Regent and California Speaker of the Assembly Fabian
Núñez said at the meeting that the state legislature
supports restoring funding to academic preparation programs that
have been shown to be effective.
“We see their value. … We are going to be working
diligently to restore those funds,” he said.