STATE LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
March 23, 2007
(This update is produced by the UH System Office of Governmental Relations and the UH Division of University Advancement as a service to the UH System community.)
SESSION REACHES HALF-WAY MARK
The 80th Legislative Session reached the half-way mark this week and the pace has quickened markedly. Next Wednesday, UH System Regents Welcome Wilson and Jim Wise will appear before the Senate Nominations Committee for their confirmation hearing.
On Thursday, the House will consider the Appropriations Bill. They have adopted the traditional rule that disallows floor amendments that increase items of appropriations unless a comparable decrease is made elsewhere in the bill. Once the Senate has passed the bill, a conference committee composed of five Senators and five Representatives will hammer out the final version of the bill.
The following comparison includes UH System legislative priorities of restoration of the across-the-board 10 percent reduction in our appropriations requests, full funding for approved tuition revenue bonds, and formula funding for growth.
Comparison of House Committee Substitute to FY06-07 base
| FY 06-07 Appropriated | Committee Substitute | % Change | |
| UH | $ 407,793,437 | $ 418,070,159 | 2.5% |
| UHCL | $ 79,184, 962 | $ 81,078,770 | 2.4% |
| UHD | $ 73,967,507 | $ 83,797,926 | 13.3% |
| UHV | $ 29,843,040 | $ 36,496,015 | 22.3% |
| UHS | $ 4,685,684 | $ 5,207,448 | 11.1% |
Rep. Geanie Morrison and Sen. Elliot Shapleigh have filed resolutions (HCR 159 and SCR 47 respectively) to create the Select Commission of Higher Education with a very broad charge and composed of fifteen members, appointed by the Governor, Lt. Governor and Speaker. They are to “examine the following issues related to global competitiveness in educational attainment:
(1) Current trends in educational attainment in Texas and competitor states and nations and the potential impact of those trends on the state’s long-term economic competitiveness and quality of life;
(2) Objectives and accountability measures related to the state’s educational attainment goals, including performance benchmarks comparing the best performing programs in Texas with the best performing programs in competitor states and nations;
(3) Enhancing regional support for higher education and strengthening the link between higher education and regional economic development goals;
(4) Improving the number of Texas adults attaining postsecondary credentials and strengthening the role and performance of Texas’ community colleges;
(5) Structuring higher education funding to reward student and institutional outcomes that are aligned with state and regional priorities;
(6) Increasing the quantity, quality, and commercialization of university-based research;
(7) Assessing long-term higher education capacity needs and creative approaches to meeting those needs; and
(8) Creating a policy research mechanism to track, analyze, and make recommendations to state policy makers based on the state's progress in achieving goals with respect to educational attainment and economic competitiveness.”
UH SYSTEM DAY IN AUSTIN PHOTO GALLERY ONLINE
Read about UH System Day in Austin and view the photo gallery.
