Hunter
04/14/21
The Iowa House Appropriations Committee passed a higher education budget that’s $24 million higher than the current year. However, the University of Iowa, Iowa State and the University of Northern Iowa will be frozen out of the increases. On top of that, the House plan is calling for a tuition freeze.
The Cedar Rapids Gazette reports that House Speaker Pat Grassley considers budget at the three regent universities “bloated.” He cited numbers that showed full time positions at the universities have increased 25 percent over the past decade, while enrollment only grew by 3 percent.
That brought pushback from Democratic Representative Cindy Winckler, who pointed out that the majority of that increase has come from growth at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.
Republicans say the universities won’t have to cut people or programs because of the freeze, because of the COVID-19 relief money they’re getting from the federal government.
The Iowa Senate will consider the budget next; they’ve proposed an $8 million increase in the higher education budget. Governor Kim Reynolds says she wants a $15 million increase in each of the next two years, half of the $30 million increase requested by the Board of Regents.