Sisolak asks Nevada colleges, universities to plan for more cuts

Nevada colleges and universities are projecting a budget cut worse than the one first outlined in April after being asked to make additional cuts by Gov. Steve Sisolak, for a total of 19 percent or $160 million over the next two years.

The Nevada System of Higher Education had already approved up to $124 million in cuts over the biennium in April in a worst-case scenario that included 12 furlough days for academic and administrative faculty as well as increased per-credit fees for students.

But according to a presentation to the Board of Regents on Friday, Sisolak asked the university system to plan for cuts of up to 5 percent more for the 2021 fiscal year, or about $35 million. This week, Sisolak also recommended furloughs for all state employees, which would include classified NSHE employees, though the potential savings of that measure are not included in the NSHE report.

In addition to these cuts, individual institutions say they’re facing millions of dollars in losses in revenue because of capacity caps in housing and dining facilities, as well as the costs of specialized cleaning equipment. For all schools, the total is $120 million in lost revenue.

UNLV, for example, projects $62 million in lost revenue, including $17 million from the loss of athletics and conferences, in addition to its $60 million share of the NSHE budget reductions.

To help account for these losses, the Board of Regents approved a one-time transfer of $50 million from its market fluctuation account — a rainy day fund made up of investment earnings — to individual institutions, with UNLV receiving a $26 million allocation.

Regents discussed concerns that raiding the coffers could downgrade the institution’s credit rating or affect existing bonds before ultimately approving the measure meant to reduce the need for more cuts to student services.

Chief Financial Officer Andrew Clinger said no withdrawals will be made immediately as NSHE is still awaiting official word from the governor on whether its budget reduction proposals have been accepted.

Newly appointed Regent Lisa Levine also asked that the board consider cuts closer to home in order to minimize the effects on students, such as freezing an account that board members have for coffee and lunch with constituents.

Vice Chairman Mark Doubrava expressed concern that the cuts would eventually hurt schools such as UNLV and Nevada State College the most.

“I’ve seen this movie before with the Great Recession a little bit,” Doubrava said. “It’s usually the southern institutions that suffer a cut that’s never replenished.”

Contact Aleksandra Appleton at 702-383-0218 or aappleton@reviewjournal.com. Follow @aleksappleton on Twitter.