By Noah Grand
Daily Bruin Reporter
The Academic Senate heard the unthinkable at Tuesday’s
Legislative Assembly meeting: University of California President
Richard Atkinson is “committed to doing everything he can to
raise student fees.”
Executive Vice Chancellor Wyatt Rory Hume relayed the news and
warned that the next two years at UCLA will be rough.
Steve Olsen, vice chancellor of budget and finance, predicts
that the 2003-04 budget is “even bleaker” than this
year’s, which cut educational outreach funding and did not
provide faculty or staff a raise for cost of living adjustment.
The senate was also told to prepare for an additional 8 percent
cut across campus over the next two years to survive.
Student fees ““ which stand at $4,229 for California
residents and $11,132 for non-residents ““ have not increased
over the past seven years because the state provides the funds to
prevent a fee increase, said UC spokesman Brad Hayward.
But Gov. Gray Davis’ budget proposal for the 2002-03
fiscal year did not include the $33.6 million to prevent a fee
increase.
Hayward did not deny that Atkinson wants to raise student fees,
but said an increase is unlikely because of political opposition
from the governor and legislature.
“The governor is opposed to any student fee
increases,” said Hilary McLean, a spokeswoman for Davis.
“Throughout his career, he has fought to keep fees
affordable.”
The UC is trying to get more money added to its budget through
negotiating with the governor and state legislators, Hayward
said.
Olsen ““ former deputy director for the State Department of
Finance under Gov. Pete Wilson ““ attributed most of the
current budget crunch to falling technology stocks that cost the
state approximately $10 billion in revenue this fiscal year.
“You have to go back to the depression to see that big of
a reduction in revenue in one year,” Olsen said.
This cut in revenue is not just affecting the UC.
“Every department and agency is having to tighten its belt
in order to make our bottom line hold,” McLean said. She
added that it is too soon to predict next year’s budget or
the state’s revenue for this year since the governor revises
the budget proposal in May.
Bryant Tan, academic affairs commissioner for the Undergraduate
Students Association Council, was surprised to hear that fees may
rise.
Both Hume and Olsen answered questions from the floor, but Tan
did not ask any questions and left the meeting early to attend
class.
“You don’t have to pay to go through K-12 public
education,” Tan said, in a later interview. “You should
not be charged to go to any public institution. If anything, fees
should be lowered, not raised.”
The Academic Senate also approved a change in general education
requirements for the College of Letters & Science at the
meeting.
The change cuts four courses distributed among the humanities,
sciences and social sciences, starting with fall 2002 freshmen.