Higher Education Deal is Likely to Remain
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Higher Education Deal is Likely to Remain

Date: February 17, 2010
By: Sara Randolph
State Capitol Bureau

Intro:  A House Appropriations chairman endorses the Governor's tuition freeze plan which would cut higher education budgets by 5 percent.
RunTime:  0:45
OutCue:  SOC

Wrap: Five percent is the number Gov. Jay Nixon and higher education leaders agreed to in the fall.

They also agreed to an in-state tuition freeze for undergrads.

A billion dollar state budget shortfall is looming this time next year.

But House Education Appropriations Chair Mike Thomson,a Maryville Republican, says he's not cutting any more money from this years budget.

Actuality:  THOMSON1.WAV
Run Time:  00:14
Description: "I have not intentions at this time of doing that at least from this committee. I believe the ramifications of that would be far worse than what money we could take out and put in the other programs."

Over the last two days college and universities have given the committee their plans on how they will deal with this year's cuts.

From the state Capitol, I'm Sara Randolph.

Intro:  The Education Appropriations Committee chairman has signed onto Nixon's tuition freeze plan to cut costs of higher education budgets by 5 percent.
RunTime:  0:33
OutCue:  SOC

Wrap: Republican House Budget chairman Allen Icet says we are heading toward tough times.

Actuality:  AICET.WAV
Run Time:  00:05
Description: "I think next year if nothing happens, and I always give that caveat, there will be entire programs that are simply zeroed out."
Icet told Representative Rick Stream of St. Louis County to ask colleges what they've done to prepare for the budget hole in 2012 (20-12), when roughly 1-billion dollars of federal stabilization funds expire.

Actuality:  AICET2.WAV
Run Time:  00:02
Description: "And if the answer is that they've done nothing, then they've done a bad job."

Stream says colleges might have to cut some programs but that closing campuses would be very, very, very extreme.
 
From the state Capitol, I'm Sara Randolph.