In regard to what is being said about the vetoes to the university, it is important to know the facts.
The governor did not cut the university’s budget by 41 percent. He cut the state’s contribution to the university’s budget by 41 percent. The state, originally made up 17 percent of UA’s budget, now it makes up 7 percent. Before the cuts, the state paid the UA system 250 percent of the national average that state governments pay public universities within their states.
Now, we pay 150 percent of the national average. The targeting of community campuses is coming from UA President Johnson and the Board of Regents.
There were to line items within the budget related to the university. The first was the UA main campuses, Anchorage and Fairbanks. This was cut by the Governor. The second was community campuses, like Prince William Sound College. This was not cut by the governor.
— William Deaton
Cordova
