THE CAPITOL, TALLAHASSEE, March 30, 2010..... Despite initial projections that the university system could take major hits in next year's budget, university officials are relatively happy to see that they will likely see a budget between $3.41 billion and $3.5 billion, about on par with last year's.
Given the history of things, we're not distressed, said Florida Board of Governors spokesman Bill Edmonds.
The House is proposing a $3.4 billion budget for the state university system with an 8 percent increase in base tuition taking it from $88.59 per credit hour to $95.67 per credit hour. Individual universities would then be able to raise tuition an additional amount.
In comparison, the Senate is offering up a $3.54 billion budget that also includes the 8 percent tuition increase.
Both the House and Senate budget committees have given the OK for the two budgets, but they have not yet participated in full floor debates or established conference committees to iron out the differences between the two versions. Halfway through the 2010 legislative session, theyre seemingly further ahead in the budget process than they were a year ago when the Legislature had to extend by a week to finish its work.
There is still plenty of room for lawmakers to tweak the university system budget.
Now, comes the real heavy lifting, the second half, Edmonds said.
One of the biggest differences between the two chambers' proposals is over the popular Bright Futures Scholarship program.
Last year, the Legislature chose to alter the scholarship program that originally paid full or partial tuition so that it offered a flat rate per credit hour. The highest achieving students currently receive $126 per credit hour, while a second tier of students receives $95 per credit hour.
Under the House proposal for next year, the first tier of students would receive $110 per credit hour and the second tier would receive $83 per credit hour. The Senate would keep the rates at the current level.
However, the Senate would also make a number of substantial changes to the program. A budget conforming bill would strip the program of many of its original provisions including the level at which students could qualify for the awards by raising the qualifying SAT score. It would also permanently take the scholarship away from students who can't maintain their grades in college. Currently, students can apply for the scholarship to be reinstated if their grades fall below the require grade point average.
Sen. Eleanor Sobel, D-Hollywood, has filed a floor amendment that would change the reinstatement process of the current bill. It would allow for the restoration of the scholarship one time and also not penalize National Guard members who are called up to active duty mid-semester and thus can't fulfill academic requirements.
