The Virginia General Assembly unanimously approved amendments to the state's two-year, $80 billion spending plan Sunday evening.
The adopted budget will allocate funds for community-based care for people with mental disabilities, transportation and public education, Sarah Buckley, spokesperson for Del. David Toscano, D-Charlottesville, said.
"When the budget left the House, it was not a budget that I could support," Toscano said. "There were too many cuts for K-12 education and higher education. But those cuts have been restored."
Toscano said he supported the legislation largely because of those restored funds. He said he was disappointed, however, that the Assembly could not do more to restore the Rotunda.
"The biggest disappointment was the Rotunda funding," said Colette Sheehy, University vice president for management and budget. Initially, the University hoped to receive $2.59 million to go toward a repair project including the Rotunda's dome roof. A six-year plan described in a bill was proposed for its renovation but it did not pass. "It puts us back to square one again in terms of putting a funding package together," she said.
Sheehy said the University will allocate private money earmarked for historical preservation to develop a design for the Rotunda's roof. After presenting the plan to the Board of Visitors in June, the University will request funding from the governor again.
The budget does, however, apportion money to the University for enrollment growth, which will begin next year on a small, incremental basis. Sheehy said 120 more new students will be admitted than in the previous year, and the state will compensate the University for the increased class size. She credits this apportionment to President A. Teresa Sullivan, who spoke with Gov. Bob McDonnell and was adamant that if the University was going to grow it needed support.
Sheehy also said the University will receive $2.1 million for new facilities for the College and the Engineering School. $3 million will be allocated to the Medical School for cancer research.
McDonnell, meanwhile, was concerned with the issues of transportation reform, government reform and higher education and "was very pleased with progress made in those areas," press secretary Jeff Caldwell said.
Of the governor's initiatives, 92 percent were passed by both houses, including McDonnell's $4 billion investment in transportation.
Sen. Creigh Deeds, D-Charlottesville, called the budget a "grand compromise" and said he was glad an agreement could be reached. He also said he was surprised the legislation passed unanimously but attributes this largely to 2011 being an election year for the legislature.
"Frankly, the big work of the General Assembly is to come; that is when we redraw district lines," Deeds said. "You aren't going to get everything you want. In this election year, there is more to do than fight over a spending plan that was going to pass."
Despite additional funding from the new budget plan, the University still will feel the lingering impact of a 2010 budget cut that reduced its budget by $14.7 million.
Sheehy added she is fairly happy with the outcome.
"I think given the environment that the commonwealth is still operating in, its revenues are growing slightly, but we still are not out of this downturn," she said. "I think that the governor has demonstrated that higher education is important to the commonwealth."
Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics, said the University did reasonably well in the budget outcome, adding no institution ever gets everything it wants.
"One year cannot change the big picture," Sabato said in an e-mail. "Over the past four decades, state support for the University has declined very significantly as a percentage of our revenues. The state is pledging more if we accept more students. The Board has agreed to take those students. The trick will be to get the state to fulfill its pledge fully, year after year."
Ana Mir contributed to this article.
Read More
U.Va. researchers identify that HIV drugs can protect against Alzheimer’s disease
By Lauren Seeliger | 2 days agoDoctor Jayakrishna Ambati and his research team have begun work on a new drug called K9 which could treat and prevent Alzheimer’s.
Graduating students share their future plans as they enter the job market
By Nina Broderick | 3 days agoMany students find the Career Center to be a valuable tool during the job search and application process.
U.Va.’s Finals Weekend spotlights the achievement and service of the Class of 2025
By Leigh Bailey | 5 days agoIn University President Jim Ryan’s welcome address, he acknowledged the support of family members and friends present in the audience and beyond that played supportive roles in these graduates’ lives.
