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United Student Government passed a resolution calling for a preservation of higher education funding in any New York State deficit-related budget cuts last week.
The resolution, “In Defense of Higher Education,” is a reaction to New York Governor David Paterson’s Deficit Reduction Proposal, which seeks to close a $5 billion gap over the next two years with significant cuts to the state’s $133 billion budget.
Among those proposed cuts is $211 million from higher education, including $26.2 million from the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP), $2.28 million from the Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP) and $713,000 from the Science Technology Entry Program (STEP).
“The economic recession has left many students under increased financial strain and these proposed fiscal cuts would be an undue and unjust burden on those most vulnerable students who rely on these state funded aid programs in order to pursue higher education in New York and pay for their continued academic collegiate studies,” the resolution reads.
On Nov. 30, Executive President John Tully Gordon, FCRH ’10, Executive Vice President Michael Recca, CBA ’10, and Vice President of CBA ’11 Nadia Basil mailed copies of the resolution along with a cover letter to 164 members of the state senate and assembly, including all members of relevant education and budget committees. They urged representatives to reject Paterson’s proposal and come up with alternative ways to close the budget gap.
“Fordham has guaranteed that any student who was given financial aid when they started here will receive that money towards tuition during their four years here,” Recca said. “Our understanding is that all cuts to financial aid will impact the services Fordham provides. The budget cuts this summer were an example of this. To make sure students were still able to attend, the University made several significant budget cuts and removed services across the campus that are vital to the University. If we lose funding from the state for financial aid, students will be in danger of facing another round of service cuts for the upcoming year.”
Recca said USG also plans to bring the resolution before the newly formed New York City Student Government Alliance, a group spearheaded by Fordham’s USG, at its next meeting in early 2010.
Ninety percent of Fordham students receive some sort of financial aid, according to the resolution, all of which will be affected in some way by state cuts. TAP helps pay for tuition for students with family incomes under $80,000 per year. HEOP helps underprivileged and educationally disadvantaged students attend schools which they otherwise would not have been able to attend because of economics and academics. The program screens students for participation and provides tutoring and remedial coursework. STEP provides similar assistance for science programs.
“While, it is important to note that no official details have been provided, it is our understanding that the cut to TAP financial aid would be a straight award reduction of $120 to all TAP awards for the spring 2010 semester,” Gordon said. “While this may not seem like a significant amount of money to some, in this fragile economic situation, where many families are dealing with wage reductions or job loss, any additional financial strain on the students of Fordham University from the state government, is something that we will not stand for and are proud to defend against.”
Cuts to higher education, however, have not been the main focus of the debate over Paterson’s proposal, as most of the attention has been on massive proposed spending cuts to health care and elementary and high school education. Paterson originally proposed a $686 million cut to school districts for fiscal year 2009-2010 alone, though he recently compromised to reduce those cuts by using $391 million of federal stimulus money allocated for 2010-2011 this year instead. He also downsized the proposed cut in health care from $287 million to $223 million.
Paterson unilaterally cut the deficit in half by issuing executive orders that drastically cut spending in government agencies and approved new revenue projects, including new casinos. Still, if New York wants to avoid a potentially catastrophic downgrade in its bond rating, which directly affects the state’s ability to finance future budgets, the state has to come up with at least another $1.5 billion in savings.
“Frankly, we’re running out of money,” Paterson said. “We cannot, we must not risk the future of our children and our children’s children to borrow money that we don’t have. Nor can we engage in the tried and failed remedies of taxing and spending. In that regard, we must make the tough decisions to save our state by first recognizing that we cannot live beyond our means.”
New York State already spends more per pupil in its public school system than any other state, and it also spends more per capita and twice the national average on Medicaid, but many representatives have been reluctant to make cuts, instead calling for one-time quick fixes, including raiding public authorities for cash.
The problem is that the state’s deficit issues are not projected to improve anytime soon. State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli is projecting a cumulative $27.5-billion shortfall over the next three years.
“The state’s fiscal picture can’t be ignored any longer,” said DiNapoli, who projects a $4.1 billion gap for this fiscal year, nearly $1 billion more than Paterson’s proposal. “To do nothing is not a solution. Everything has to be on the table.”
Still, education and healthcare leaders say they have already made too many cuts.
“Additional cuts will force hospitals to lay off workers, eliminate services and even close their doors for good,” Kenneth Raske, president of the Greater New York Hospital Association, wrote in an Albany Times-Union editorial. “Health care job losses statewide could reach 12,000. The financial collapse and closure of two hospitals in Queens earlier this year was no aberration. Forty hospitals – 14 percent of all hospitals in the state – have closed since 1990. Long before the recession hit and the budget ax fell, New York’s hospitals were struggling with inadequate reimbursements, exploding medical malpractice costs and the swelling ranks of the uninsured.”
Raske said the state would be better served making cuts to education, where the average class size for a New York public school is just 26.4 students.
“Financial sacrifices from the education industry have paled in comparison even though spending per pupil is growing while Medicaid spending per enrollee is declining,” Raske said.
Michael Mulgrew, president of the United Federation of Teachers, however, said the state could not afford more cuts to education. The rise in class size means over 1,600 teaching jobs will be cut.
“The children in New York City’s classrooms should not have to bear the brunt of these cuts,” Mulgrew said.
Whatever solution New York chooses to solve its budget crisis, the situation is likely to cost Paterson his job. A recent Sienna Research Institute poll found State Attorney General and potential candidate Andrew Cuomo leading Paterson 75 percent to 16 percent.
Paterson, however, is setting aside political ambitions for what he believes is the right thing for New York State.
“I will mortgage my political career on this plan, but I will not mortgage the fate of the state of New York,” Paterson said.
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