Gov. Sam Brownback will start a tour of the state's universities this week to pitch his funding proposal to lawmakers.
He's pushing for mostly level funding for colleges and universities with some targeted increases, but legislators are considering cuts. Brownback has said higher education has a connection to economic growth in Kansas. Here he is speaking to reporters last week.
“So what I want to do is to put out the full vision here, the total number of students we have in higher education, which is a large number, the need for stable funding, the amount that higher ed has been cut over time since the downturn," says Brownback.
House and Senate budget negotiators are considering cuts of between 2 percent and 4 percent.
A 4 percent cut would equal about $30 million. They're also looking at cutting millions more in funding for university salaries.
Last week, Speaker Ray Merrick said House members are committed to higher education, but they believe there is room for savings.
Brownback's university tour dates:
April 22 - Wichita State University
April 23 - Washburn University/Washburn Institute of Technology
April 24 - Pittsburg State University
April 25 - University of Kansas School of Medicine, Kansas City Kansas Community College
April 26 - Emporia State University
May 6 - Kansas State University
April 23 - University of Kansas
May 7 - Fort Hays State University
Mary 7 - University of Kansas School of Medicine - Salina)