SAN FRANCISCO ““ University of California President Mark Yudof voiced support for Gov. Jerry Brown’s tax initiative and said he will encourage the UC Board of Regents to do the same at a future meeting.
Brown’s measure, which would boost funding for public education and other services, proposes to increase the sales tax by a quarter-cent for four years and hike income taxes for seven years for those making more than $250,000. The measure is currently gathering signatures to qualify for the November ballot.
“(The tax) won’t be a complete panacea, but it offers the best promise I’ve seen to press the reset button on an epoch of dismal decline,” Yudof said today at the regents’ bimonthly meeting at UC San Francisco’s Mission Bay campus.
It is unspecified how much of the tax revenue would go toward the UC, said Patrick Lenz, vice president of budget and capital resources.
If the initiative does not pass, the UC would be looking at $200 million in trigger cuts, which would mean sizeable midyear tuition hikes, Yudof said.
He declined to “speculate” on a specific amount that tuition could increase by.
“It’s not so much the magnitude of cuts but their unpredictability,” Lenz said, adding that it is difficult for campuses to plan classes and enrollments without knowing the budget.
Anywhere from $40 million to $50 million of the reduction could be passed to UCLA, said Steve Olsen, vice chancellor of finance, budget and capital programs. Olsen added that he remains “cautiously optimistic” that the tax measure will pass.
He said UCLA continues to find new sources of revenue, cut down administrative expenses, efficiently structure academic programs and develop partnerships with other campuses.
The UC Academic Senate will vote on a “memorial” ““ a formal statement of its views ““ urging the regents to support Brown’s measure and other legislation, said UC Academic Council Chair Bob Anderson.
Only the Regents may support the ballot measure on behalf of the entire University, though faculty members and UC administrators may back the initiative as individuals.
University administrators are also working with legislators on a long-term financial blueprint that would plan for single-digit tuition and fee increases over several years. Lawmakers would have the option to buy out these hikes by allocating additional funds to the UC, Lenz said.
The multi-year plan would also include General Fund increases from the state to the UC over three years if Brown’s initiative is successful.
The regents will discuss this funding model at their meeting Thursday.
Kevin Huang, a student at UC Santa Cruz who attended the meeting, expressed concern about enacting systematic tuition hikes.
“Many of you rejected a four-year fee increase last fall,” he told the regents during the public comment period, referring to a plan that would have raised tuition by 8 to 16 percent annually, depending on the level of state funding.
Lana El-Farra, a second-year UCLA political science student, spoke about the rapidly rising cost of attending a UC. Tuition has jumped by 50 percent since fall 2009.
El-Farra urged the regents to support state Assembly Speaker John A. Perez’s “Middle Class Scholarship,” which would cut tuition by two-thirds for students whose families make less than $150,000.
The bill would be financed by raising taxes on out-of-state companies and require two-thirds legislative support ““ which can only be achieved with Republican votes ““ to pass.
Reviewing Campus Police and Protest Policies
The regents also talked about the ongoing system-wide examination of protocols regarding police response to campus protests.
The discussion comes at a time when the release of a separate report overlooking the use of pepper spray during a protest at UC Davis is being argued in Alameda County Superior Court. The UC police union requested the court to block disclosing a part of the report that discusses specific police officers’ behavior.
A decision is expected to be made by the end of the business day, said Lynn Tierney, a UC spokeswoman.
At the meeting, UC Berkeley School of Law Dean Christopher Edley Jr. said his draft of the system-wide review looking at police practices across the UC will be released within two weeks for public input.
Compiled by Andra Lim and Emily Suh, Bruin senior staff