GVSU president says Lansing has moral, constitutional requirements to fund higher education, lawmakers disagree
By Dave Murray | The Grand Rapids Press
February 19, 2010, 5:30PM
Grand Valley State University President Thomas J. Haas testified Friday before a state Senate committee.Lawmakers have a "moral obligation" to fund higher education, even if they don't think it's a priority, Grand Valley State University President Thomas J. Haas told a state Senate committee.But two committee members say Haas has to understand that money is tight, and universities are one of many areas of public concern that lawmakers have to budget for.
"We don't have much money," state Sen. Bill Hardiman, R-Kentwood, said after the session. "It's like a family. Sometimes you can take everyone out to eat steak. And when things get tight, you have to stay home and eat hamburger. They're not quite at the hamburger level yet, but they have to understand we have other obligations."
Haas was among several university leaders testifying Friday before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee for Higher Education. The hearing, at Saginaw Valley State University, was first in a series of sessions as lawmakers work on the 2011 state budget.
He told senators that it is "apparent that higher education is no longer the funding priority it once was."