SUNY chancellor urges major capital plan and maintenance funding to preserve campuses
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Summary
SUNY Chancellor John King told legislators the system needs multiyear capital investment to address a roughly $10 billion critical maintenance backlog, while applauding statewide tuition freezes and asking for targeted operating increases and program expansions including SUNY Reconnect and ASAP/ACE.
SUNY Chancellor John King Jr. told the joint legislative higher education committees that New Yorks public university system is recovering enrollment and advancing student success but faces an urgent capital shortfall that threatens campus operations and student experience.
King said SUNY has achieved "back-to-back enrollment gains" for the first time since 1989 and credited state support for sustaining a tuition freeze and expanding access programs. Still, he said the system faces roughly $10 billion in unmet critical maintenance needs and requested a dedicated multiyear capital plan to keep academic buildings, dorms and research facilities functional.
The governors executive budget, King said, increases operating support for state-operated campuses by $54 million and proposes $595 million in critical maintenance capital, up from the traditional $550 million allocation. He also highlighted investments to expand SUNY Reconnect, which makes community college free to eligible adult learners, and asked lawmakers to restore a requested $1 billion multiyear capital program that he said would permit strategic planning and address urgent fixes such as roofs, heating systems and failing HVAC.
King also outlined proposals to double the Empire State Service Corps, expand ASAP/ACE to reach 10,000 students and increase funding for SUNY hospitals, naming $100 million in operating aid for SUNY Downstate and a $1.1 billion capital plan for its renovation. He warned, however, that the executive budget left research capital requests unmet and said SUNY had sought additional research funding to sustain growth in competitive federal research dollars.
Lawmakers pressed King on distribution of funds across regions, supports for adult learners (childcare and transportation), food insecurity and the role of campus police. King told senators and assembly members SUNY has childcare at many community colleges and is working to increase supports, and noted targeted triage criteria guide distribution of limited maintenance dollars.
King emphasized the link between modern facilities and recruitment: "If students find dorms without hot water or academic buildings without heat, we will not be able to keep attracting those students." He said SUNY will continue to press for a long-term capital commitment in the enacted budget and for consistent operating increases to sustain services and collective bargaining obligations.
The chancellor concluded by urging a multiyear approach so campuses can plan and invest, saying the requested commitments would help SUNY sustain affordable excellence and economic development across the state.
The hearing gave legislators detailed follow-ups on specific campus problems and the chancellor promised to provide requested data on items such as the SUNY five-year wish list, the scope of research projects, and precise counts for enrollment and program expansions. The hearing then proceeded to CUNY and other agencies for parallel budget testimony.
