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SD university leader argues against maintenance and repair budget cuts • South Dakota Searchlight [1]

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Date: 2025-02

PIERRE — The leader of South Dakota’s public universities argued against proposed maintenance and repair cuts when he appeared Wednesday before legislators on a budget committee.

Nathan Lukkes, executive director of the state Board of Regents, discussed the cuts at the Capitol with the Legislature’s Joint Appropriations Committee. He said the proposed $9 million reduction in the university system’s repair and maintenance budget is “very concerning.”

“We would hope as you’re wrestling with some of those decisions and looking at what’s the right decision and where to cut, that we can be at the table and find a way that doesn’t put us behind the eight ball 10 to 20 years down the road,” Lukkes said.

The universities have a combined $700 million worth of repair and maintenance needs in their 10-year plan, he added, and collectively manage about $3.5 billion worth of infrastructure. The total budget for the university system this year is $950 million from a combination of state, federal and student-supported funds.

Former Gov. Kristi Noem proposed the cuts as part of a broader plan to balance the next state budget in the face of declining sales tax revenue, deplenished federal pandemic aid and rising Medicaid costs. She’s since become secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and her lieutenant governor, Larry Rhoden, has been sworn in as governor.

Noem’s budget plan also includes an additional $2 million cut in the university system’s base funding, and Lukkes said the regents are “willing to find a way to make that work.”

“You can’t benefit in the good times and then scream and cry when there’s a downturn and you’re not getting any funding,” he said.

Those good times included working with lawmakers to effectively freeze tuition for the past five years, except for one year when the average student experienced a $100 increase. The universities rose from fourth to first in cost competitiveness among neighboring states during that period, Lukkes said. Meanwhile, enrollment at South Dakota’s universities grew each of the last three years to a total of 36,091 students.

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[1] Url: https://southdakotasearchlight.com/briefs/sd-university-leader-argues-against-maintenance-and-repair-budget-cuts/

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