Spring Break
Ritter Rejects Cuts to Colleges
Jessica Fender - The Denver Post Staff
Issue date: 4/14/09 Section: News
Gov. Bill Ritter said Monday that a potential $300 million cut to Colorado colleges is off the table, though he offered no guidance on how to solve the state's shortfall as the Senate moved forward with a plan that taps money from a workers' compensation insurer.
College officials greeted the news with cautious optimism but said they're not safe until additional funds are found to balance the state's $17.9 billion budget.
Ritter's announcement, the first time he has publicly stated his position on a major budget proposal this year, came as senators approved the budget and critics accused Ritter of "hiding under his desk" during a crisis.
"For anybody to claim the governor has been anything but out front or heavily involved is just wrong," said Ritter's spokesman, Evan Dreyer, who pointed out that Ritter's office first proposed a list of budget fixes in January. "This is a collaborative effort that includes multiple parties."
Dreyer stopped short of promising a veto should the college cuts remain in the budget, but he said Ritter found out last week that the proposed $300 million reduction would disqualify Colorado from $760 million in federal stimulus money for all education levels.
Colorado colleges are already taking a $150 million hit, though Ritter plans to fill those holes for two years with the stimulus cash - provided the state receives it.
Dreyer declined to signal Ritter's opinion on the Senate-approved plan to take $500 million from Pinnacol Assurance, a quasi-governmental workers' compensation insurer, or other proposed budget fixes. Pinnacol leaders have promised a court fight should the plan to raid the insurer's reserves continue to succeed.
The budget and the Pinnacol plan head next to the House.
Optimistic but still on guard
Nancy McCallin, president of the Colorado Community College System, called Ritter's announcement "a good step, but we aren't out of the woods yet. We clearly don't know where the $300 million will come from."
College officials greeted the news with cautious optimism but said they're not safe until additional funds are found to balance the state's $17.9 billion budget.
Ritter's announcement, the first time he has publicly stated his position on a major budget proposal this year, came as senators approved the budget and critics accused Ritter of "hiding under his desk" during a crisis.
"For anybody to claim the governor has been anything but out front or heavily involved is just wrong," said Ritter's spokesman, Evan Dreyer, who pointed out that Ritter's office first proposed a list of budget fixes in January. "This is a collaborative effort that includes multiple parties."
Dreyer stopped short of promising a veto should the college cuts remain in the budget, but he said Ritter found out last week that the proposed $300 million reduction would disqualify Colorado from $760 million in federal stimulus money for all education levels.
Colorado colleges are already taking a $150 million hit, though Ritter plans to fill those holes for two years with the stimulus cash - provided the state receives it.
Dreyer declined to signal Ritter's opinion on the Senate-approved plan to take $500 million from Pinnacol Assurance, a quasi-governmental workers' compensation insurer, or other proposed budget fixes. Pinnacol leaders have promised a court fight should the plan to raid the insurer's reserves continue to succeed.
The budget and the Pinnacol plan head next to the House.
Optimistic but still on guard
Nancy McCallin, president of the Colorado Community College System, called Ritter's announcement "a good step, but we aren't out of the woods yet. We clearly don't know where the $300 million will come from."
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