Committee proposes interim study and funding framework for higher education; considers $49 million-plus in discretionary allocations

Chairman Sorvaugh introduced a proposed interim study to examine higher education funding formulas, capital distribution and financial mechanisms. The study as described would include seven voting legislative members (a majority- and minority-leader appointment pattern from each chamber and one member-at-large appointed by legislative management) and multiple nonvoting members drawn from university finance officers and regional representatives.

The chairman laid out a funding proposal intended to balance many individual campus requests without picking discrete projects for every institution. Key elements of the suggested package included increasing the economic diversification research fund from $5.5 million to $8 million (with $800,000 allocated to nine smaller institutions and $7.2 million to the two research universities over the biennium); setting aside $12 million or $10 million for a workforce innovation grant pot for the nine smaller institutions (the transcript records two alternative figures discussed); providing $15 million each for targeted UND and NDSU research or program initiatives (NDSU’s Horizon program and UND space-related proposals were cited as examples, both reduced from larger requests); allocating $15 million for UND medical-school SIM program funding (with a suggestion to use an additional $1.4 million in formula adjustments as part of that funding); and raising Tier 3 capital-matching funds from $9 million by an additional $7.5 million to $16.5 million with temporary changes to matching ratios (UND and NDSU moving toward a 1:1 match and the nine smaller institutions allowed a 1:0.5 match for this one-time infusion).

Under the tier proposal, the committee discussed giving $3.75 million each to UND and NDSU and $1 million to each of the nine smaller institutions, with the state-to-local match set lower for the small institutions for this one-time allocation. Committee members raised the issue of whether the new matching requirements should apply to existing carryover balances; the chair said he would lean toward applying the new matching rules to carryover funds as well. Members discussed holding smaller campuses harmless; two campuses (Williston and Valley City) were noted as having the largest shortfalls to reach earlier hold-harmless levels, and some senators advocated using direct line items if the committee chose to do so.

Committee members asked for time to digest the package. Senator Scheibley said he favored a lower second option that reduced the allocations to the two research universities and increased available workforce-innovation dollars to $10 million for the smaller institutions. The chairman said the package was a starting point and that the committee would take the higher-education bills and related appropriations up after session, asking staff to prepare language and to continue discussions so final numbers could be set before further committee action.

Ending: The committee advanced the proposed interim study committee structure and discussed a multi-part funding package for higher education, but members asked staff and colleagues to review the detailed numbers; no final appropriation language was adopted during the session.