Arizona State Legislature Begins 2020 Session

Jan. 27, 2020
State Relations
A University of Arizona flag is seen waving as dusk falls over Tucson

 

 

On January 13, 2020 Arizona’s Fifty-fourth legislature began the session.  President Robbins attended the opening day ceremony as a guest of House Speaker Rusty Bowers.  Later in the week Governor Ducey released his Executive Budget Proposal for FY21.  His proposal provides $81 million to the university system.  This is the largest proposed funding amount for higher education since the Great Recession. The proposal provides on-going dollars to ABOR’s New Economy Initiative that recognizes universities as economic drivers that play an essential role in workforce development.  The Governor’s budget proposal is the first step in the process; the next step is to work through the legislature.

 

President Robbins is seen standing at a podium as makes remarks to the Senate Appropriations Committee at the State Legislature

 

As part of the effort to secure legislative support for funding, Presidents Robbins, Cheng and Crow, and ABOR Chair Larry Penley presented to the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. Matt Franklin from Raytheon Missile Systems also testified with President Robbins and emphasized the importance of UArizona graduates for Raytheon’s workforce and Southern Arizona’s economy. GCR will now ramp up meetings with individual lawmakers as the session moves forward to advocate for university funding.

FY21 Executive Budget Proposal – University Funding

$35 million on-going – New Economy Initiative 

  • UA - $11.2 million (32% - Up 5% from previous formula) 
  • ASU - $16.1 million (46%) 
  • NAU - $7.7 million (22%)  

$35 million one-time – Operations & Capital (based on resident enrollment)

  • UA - $9.4 million (27%) 
  • ASU - $19.2 million (55%) 
  • NAU - $6.3 million (18%)  

$10 million one-time - State Match for Competitive Grants

  • Distributed by the Governor’s Office to provide a State match for grant proposals pursued by Arizona's public universities.

$1 million one-time - Arizona Teacher Academy Recruitment 

  • Distributed by the ABOR for ATA recruitment  

 

Other Budget Highlights

$50 million – Broadband Expansion 

  • Funds 514 miles of broadband conduit and fiber optic cable along designated highway segments, including:

·       I-17: between Sunset Point and Flagstaff

·       I-40: between the Arizona-New Mexico and Arizona-California borders

·       I-19: between Tucson and Nogales

$21 million – Community College Funding 

$608 million – K-12 Funding