The University Budget Advisory Committee and Sacramento State have been working together to project the upcoming budget cuts the CSU system would faceunder Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposal.

On Jan. 10, Brown released his initial budget proposal for the 2011-12 fiscal years. The proposal included$500 million in cuts for both the CSU and the UC.

“These cuts will be painful, requiring sacrifice from every sector of the state, but we have no choice,” Brown said in a recent press release.

Joseph Sheley, provost and vice president of academic affairs, said the advisory committee and the Academic Affairs Office are working together to discuss the plans for the new budget cuts in the next few days. These meetings are undergoing a possible strategic plan as to what to do when the budget passes. They will be discussing registration fees, enrollment statistics and what these concerns can mean for Sac State as a whole.

Sheley said the plans for the projected budget cuts for Sac State remain uncertain at this time. Also, the administration of the CSU does not provide many specifics as to how the reductions will be accommodated which leaves students and faculty unsure of what to expect for the upcoming months.

Sheley discusses the budget cuts as a large-scale issue and how it will affect students and faculty at Sac State Possible effects for the university as a whole includes: fee and tuition increases, students paying a higher share of cost and a decrease in student enrollment for the university.

While Academic Affairs and the advisory committeework ona strategy for budget cuts, the non-partisan Legislative Analyst’s Office offered advice as to what actions should be implemented for the CSU systems.

Analyst Steve Boilard said the proposed $500 million cut to state funding would partly be backfilled with $147 million in new tuition revenue, resulting in students paying a larger share of the cost of their education. However, Boilard also said students receiving financial aid would not be affected by the tuition increase due to the Cal Grant program and the CSU system institutional financial aid, protecting students who are in need of financial aid.

Boilard believes the question is not what will be the cut to CSU but rather how will CSU absorb the cut.

“It is important to make decisions early so students, employees, and the general public know what to expect,” Boilard said.

Boilard advises to reduce the number of courses students need to take, pay closer attention to transfer requirements, major prerequisites and graduation requirements; all of which can lower costs for the university.

Although the Legislative Analyst’s Office advises CSU systems about how to approach the budget reduction, Academic Affairs will continue to work with the advisory committee, until the budget passes.

Sheley believes that although the budget still remains uncertain,he anticipatesthat in the next month, students and faculty will have a better understanding of what to expect with the estimated reduction of $500 million for the CSU system.

Even though budget cuts are looming, the University Budget Advisory Commitee and Sac State enrolled 3,000 new and transfer students for the spring 2011 semester.

The advisory committee and Academic Affairs plan to report to the university about the final budget data thoroughly as the months progress, Sheley said.

Although there are several downfalls to the budget, officials continue to stay positive for a brighter future in higher education.

“I think there are positive things that can come out of this more accountability and efficiency, for example, and perhaps a greater attention to the value and purpose of higher education,” Boilard said. “Let’s do what we can to come out of this with a more thoughtful, logical, efficient higher education system. That’s the silver lining of opportunities brought on by crisis.”

Yvette Villasenorcan be reached at [email protected]