Budget Options Group concludes its work
March 5, 2014
Budget Options Group chair
As many of you may recall, Chancellor Rogers in December formed the Budget Options Group. Given the challenges of increasing costs and reduced state funding, our task was to collect and analyze cost-saving and revenue-generating ideas submitted by the campus community and others. We assembled these ideas and compiled an analysis for review by the Planning and Budget Committee. This analysis is now available online at the Office of Management and Budget’s website at http://bit.ly/UAFbudget.
It’s important to remember that the items identified in this analysis are not recommendations. The ideas are not in priority order and the Budget Options Group did not select any of them for implementation. Rather, our task was to analyze the pros and cons of each idea and to assign a dollar amount to any potential savings or revenue opportunities. This information will now help the Planning and Budget Committee in their deliberations, as they develop a list of recommendations to the Chancellor’s Cabinet.
Ultimately, the final list of recommended budget reductions or revenue increases for fiscal year 2015 may contain some of the items from this list, as well as others developed by the Planning and Budget Committee, which includes representatives of the faculty, staff and administration from across UAF. As part of this process, members of the campus community will also have opportunities to give their input.
I encourage you to visit the Office of Management and Budget website for more information about UAF’s FY15 budget. That page also has a link to a form that will allow you to share additional ideas. In addition, questions and comments for the Planning and Budget Committee can be sent to Julie Queen at jmlarweth@alaska.edu.