Student programs and groups within the EMU could have their budgets slashed next year after the University increased its tax on certain departments.
The University administration charges assessments to various departments to help pay for general administration such as human resources, payroll and the business office. The University will gradually increase assessments for certain departments during the next five years.
The EMU, which is subject to the assessments, had finalized its budget for next year before the increase was announced. The EMU receives the majority of its annual revenue from the incidental fee and as such, finishes its budget well before the University finishes its own budget, said EMU Director Dusty Miller. The University released the memo informing departments about the increase after the EMU’s budget was finalized, Miller said.
The increased assessments will create an additional $80,000 expense that the EMU had not factored into its budget, said EMU Board Chair Michelle Haley. She said the money needed to pay the assessments will likely harm student programs and groups within the EMU.
ASUO President Sam Dotters-Katz said the ASUO plans to hold open meeting late next week to discuss the changes. “We want to make sure we protect the integrity of individual student groups’ budgets,” he said.
The EMU can only request a seven percent increase in incidental fee funding every year, and Miller and Haley said the EMU is reaching the tipping point of its ability to increase self-earned income. The EMU’s self-earned income comes from things like ticket sales and events.
These factors combined create a precarious situation for the EMU.
EMU board members and staff will be negotiating how it will pay its assessments with the administration in the upcoming weeks, but the negotiations must happen quickly because they must be finalized by Nov. 1 in order to be considered for next year’s budget process.
The University commissioned a task force to look into how it was charging assessments in 2006, in order to comply with a 2005 Oregon University System policy update.
The OUS policy set the policy deadline of July 1, 2007, to allow Universities to properly examine their schools to determine appropriate assessment rates.
The University task force published its findings in a memo released Dec. 3, 2007. It discovered the University was undercharging its assessments on a whole.
The updates to the assessment process serves two purposes, said Laura Hubbard, associate vice president for budget and finance. They ensure everyone is paying an appropriate share of the costs needed to run general administrative departments such as human resources and payroll. They also ensure that the updated assessments will help provide a clearer view of how assessments are applied to various departments for future allocation.
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