No deal on university budget; talks to resume Monday

Lawmakers met behind closed doors for three hours Friday but couldn't reach an agreement on the university system's budget.

Assembly Speaker Barbara Buckley, D-Las  Vegas, said another closing hearing would be scheduled for Monday.

"We're committed to rolling back the cuts the governor has proposed to the university system," said Buckley acting as spokesman for the group. "We'd like to restore as much funding as we can."

She said fiscal staff would prepare information for lawmakers on another scenario so they can determine what percentage reduction the system will have to absorb. But she said all agree the 36 percent overall cut proposed by Gov. Jim Gibbons " 47 percent at UNR and 51 percent for UNLV " is unacceptable.

"We're in the teens," she said. "We'd like it to be as low as possible but it's still going to be substantial."

Dan Klaich, executive vice chancellor for the system, said 15 percent "would be devastating."

"Those are numbers that fundamentally change the campuses," he said.

Asked about a 10 percent cut, he said: "I think that would be reasonable and realistic."

But Klaich conceded he doubts the reduction can be held to 5 percent: "I don't think that's reasonable under the current circumstances."

One of the issues is the desire of some southern Nevada lawmakers to put more money into southern campuses than the funding formulas provide. UNLV is suffering under the formulas which are based on the number of students since that campus has had a declining enrollment. CSN's problem is the opposite. Enrollment there is growing far faster than the formula can account for.

Senate Minority Leader Bill Raggio, R-Reno, has adamantly opposed adding to the UNLV and College of Southern Nevada budgets outside the formula since that would reduce funding available through the formulas for UNR, TMCC and WNC.

Assemblywoman Sheila Leslie, D-Reno, said she wasn't aware of plans for any meetings during the Mother's Day weekend.

Contact reporter Geoff Dornan at gdornan@nevadaappeal.com or 687-8750.