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April 5, 2012

Governor Chafee Questions Higher Education Costs

Carroll Andrew Morse

The Projo's Gina Macris reports today that Governor Lincoln Chafee is not happy with the management of public education finance in Rhode Island...

The Board of Governors for Higher Education should have known better than to negotiate 3 percent compounded raises at the public colleges for the next three years, when other state employees, taxpayers, and families of college students are so challenged, Governor Chafee said Thursday.
Operating costs for "Public Higher Education" plus the "Rhode Island Higher Education Assistance Authority", consolidated into one item in this year's budget, grow in the Governor's budget by 2.8% over the amount spent last year (which involved a $9 million+ overrun of the originally budgeted amount), for a total of 10.8% growth over the past two years...

FY 2013 Request$983,006,187
FY 2012 Revised$956,245,535
FY 2011 Audited$887,212,753

To his credit, Governor Chafee seems to realize that this kind budget growth cannot continue indefinitely, even if a nearly 11% increase in operating costs implemented over two years might be the kind of spending that some Rhode Island progressives refer to as "austerity".

Comments

This from the clown that wanted automatic raises for his directors. Didn't he also give troopers retroactive pay raises? Lets not give him too much credit.

Posted by: Max D at April 7, 2012 3:04 PM

Who made these appointments to the Board of Governor's for Higher Ed? Oh yeah, it was Chafee himself. Just political theatre. He likes the raises. He's just fooling fools again.

Posted by: RMorris at April 8, 2012 3:56 PM

Who made these appointments to the Board of Governor's for Higher Ed? Oh yeah, it was Chafee himself. Just political theatre. He likes the raises. He's just fooling fools again.

Posted by: RMorris at April 8, 2012 3:56 PM