Wage IOA- ,m;ivio. ngan uaily --Thursday, September 44, 19
U' lobbyists politick for money
By PHILIP LEVY
iLast year, an animal rights group
decided to push legislation barring the
use of pound animals in research in
Michigan. If passed, the University
Wiuld have had to specially breed
animals at an estimated cost of $300 to
$400 per animal.
Even before the issue was presen-
ted to the legislature, University lob-
byists were involved.
'First, said Richard Kennedy, the
University's Vice President for
Gavernment Relations and its chief
lobbyist in Lansing, "We worked with
the animal rights people to come to an
understanding. We tried to help them
uaderstand the impact on University
reearch." Animal rights groups,
however, were not deterred.
The University then shifted its at-,
terition to the legislature. Officials:
from Kennedy's office testified in:
Senate hearings, and conducted a.
"general education campaign about
animals in University research,"
Kennedy said. This included giving
legislators tours of the University's
animal facilities.
The bill in now stalled.
Dependent on government
The University is greatly affected
by government regulations and
heavily dependent on state and
federal funding. The state, for exam-
ple, contributes roughly half the
University's general operating budget
through its yearly appropriations.
Kennedy's office helps draft the
University's budget request to the
state in the fall, and spends most of its
time lobbying state legislators until
the state's budget is passed late in the
summer. A couple of months later, the
process begins again.
Kathy Wilbur, an aide to Sen.
William Sederburg (R-East Lansing),
chair of the Senate's higher education
committee, says she talks to Univer-
sity lobbyists practically every day.
In addition to the budget bill, Ken-
nedy estimates that there were two to
three hundred state bills that could
have an impact on the University last
year. For example, Rep. Perry
Bullard (D-Ann Arbor) introduced
legislation last year that would bar
the University from implementing a
code of nonacademic student conduct.
The bill, however, was put on the
backburner.
Federal lobbying
Kennedy's office also deals with
federal government. Although the
University does not have an office in
Washington D.C., the University's
federal lob6yist, Thomas Butts, often
commutes back and forth from the
nation's capitol.
Much of Butts' work deals with lob-
bying against financial aid cutbacks
proposed by the Reagan ad-
ministration. He also deals with such
issues as the tax reform bill which
could hurt private contributions to the
University.
"They're sort of an intelligence
network for us," said Tom Wolanin,
an aide for Congressman William
Ford (D-Michigan), chair of the
House of Representatives' subcom-
mittee on higher education.
Researchers and University
Hospital officials also deal regularly
with government. Linda Wilson, the
University's vice president for
research, and her staff work to
procure research funds for the
University.
And like any other hospital, the
University Hospital receives money
from Medicare and Medicaid funding.
They've worked in the last year to
fight cuts in the programs.
University President Harold
Shapiro, is a valuable assest for the
University's lobbying, said Wolanin
of Congressman Ford's office.
Shapiro, a notes economist, is often
called on to make economic forecasts.
Students have also participated in
lobbying. Then-Michigan Student
Assembly President Paul Josephson
testified last year in budget hearings
at both the state and federal level.
Kennedy sums up the role of
University lobbyists, saying "What
you're really trying to do is maximize
the resources made available at the
University in the financial sense and
minimize negative contact in
regulatory matters."
;rr
a
C
0
.1
'U'faces budget woes; tuition carries burden
By PHILIP LEVY
and KERY MURAKAMI
One thing is sure every fall. Tuition goes up.
But just how much it goes up, and how much
more out-of-state students pay than in-state
students is one of the issues the University's
leaders dwell over every year in making up their
budget.
,,Fart of the problem, University officials say, is
that the state never gives them enough to meet the
University's needs. Since the state contributes
hdf the University's budget, and tuition accounts
for much of the other half, students often end up
making up much of the .shortfall.
But politics plays a role. Michigan voters who
pay in-state tuition elect Michigan legislators and
Michigan Governor James Blanchard. As a result,
the Governor has threatened two of the last three
yars to veto the legislature's higher education
budget unless the state's public universities freeze
ir-state tuition. This year, Blanchard is only
asking that Michigan tuition not be raised higher
than 4.3 percent.
"It's their job (the University's executives) to
make sure sufficient resources are made
available to ensure a quality education. Our
position is that the resources are already made
available (through state funds). The taxpayers
dan't need to pay twice (through taxes and
through tuition)."
University officials, however, disagree. They
say the state falls far short of meeting its needs.
This year, the legislature gave $15 million more
than last year, but $12 million less than the
University said it needed to break even."
To satisfy the Governor, while meeting its need-
s, the University raised tuition for out-of-staters
by eight percent. Non-Michigan residents already
pay more than twice as much as Michigan
residents.
Raise limits
However, University officials realize they can
raise out-of-state tuition only so much. At $9,000
per year, out-of-state tuition is rapidly nearing
that of private universities.
Two years ago, for example, University of-
ficials planned to raise in-state tuition by six per-
cent and out-of-state tuition by eight percent. Af-
ter the University bowed to state pressure and
froze in-state tuition, the administrators decided
to run a $1.9 million deficit and delay $300,000 in
building renovations they planned to make .
The renovations are part of a backlog in
renovations, University officials say, built up
during the state's financial crisis of the late-1970
and early-1980s. During that time, the state's con-
tribution to the University fell from 50 percent of
the budget in 1979 to 47.5 percent in 1983. Tuition
received double-digit increases as a result.
In addition to such things as leaky roofs,
University officials say, teaching labs in areas
like the natural science are using outdated
equipment.
Pay increases
Money is also needed to make up for faculty pay
increasses that were deferred when the Univer-
sity could not afford them. According to Univer-
sity President Harold Shapiro, University faculty
made as much as faculty at private univer-
sities-like Harvard, and M.I.T.,-ten years ago,
but now make eight percent less.
Also ten years ago, University faculty made
seven percent more than faculty at "peer" public
universities such as Ohio State University, but
now make only two percent more.
In addition to falling $12 million short of paying
for the University's rising costs, the state also
refused $9 million more to help meet the backlog.
University officials have said they can't expect
the state to meet this backlog, in. addition to
meeting rising costs. Such measure as internal
reallocations, they say, are necessary.
However, it is not clear whether reallocatons
will be as extensive as the "five year plan," which
redirected $200 million from "lower priority"
areas as the schools of education, art, and natural
resources to such "higher priority areas" as in-
creasing pay for engineering faculty.
The School of Education, for example, was cut
by 40 percent, and all the schools were forced to
cut back frastically in the programs it offers.
Daily Photo by ANDI SCHREIBER
Almost free
We're not sure what this graduating senior is doing at his commencement
last May. Is he reflecting on his educational experiences at the Univer-
sity? Or is he reliving thrilling lectures in Angell Hall? Or is he merely
asleep? k
Compuater'sinvade
1.
campus community
AY'
t~
By MARY CHRIS JAKLEVIC
If you hate computers, you're at the
wrong University.
Computers have been standard in
the University's business and
engineering schools for several years,
but now nearly every department in
the University uses them.
Even instuctors in such unlikely
departments as English, political
science, dance, and . Hebrew have
found uses for computers. For exam-
ple, political science students have
played world political simulation
games with computers, and dance
students have used them to
choreograph routines.
More and more students are also
using computers to write papers.
Increasing accessibility
As a result, the University has em-
barked on a three-year plan to make
computers accessible to everyone on
campus. Over the last year, the num-
ber of work stations clustered in com-
puting centers around campus has in-
creased three-fold. The computers
are open to students and faculty for
everything from analyzing data to
writing love letters.
Since the plan began last fall, the
number of computing centers -
which had been mainly limited to the
~J~-I
a sa siyies.
ege oiiege c r
Ned G a Ne srt g°0 Gc°CCa i
ar Psi e'Peseoc A\i
etQaaNea aid edgy °
gCeat ie y001 90. C"o
a o
o s ,o Ned
PC a
aie se\e
it ,led\ Eves '
Phone 764-0558
Michigan Union and the Un-
dergraduate Library on central cam-
pus - has increased from eight to fif#
teen. Several more will be installed
this summer, including in the dorms.
By the time the plan is completed in
1988, there will be 1,700 workstations.
available.
Computers where students live w
Behind this enormous project ,
Vice Provost for Informatiop
Technology Douglas Van Houweling.
He was hired two years ago to keep
the University technologically on par
with top private universities, which
often require students to buy personal
computers. Part of making com-
puters accessible is putting theca
where students live, he said. Vgp
Houweling envisions enough clusters
of, computers in the dorms so that
students can "go to them in their
pajamas.
"My goal is to get one workstatign
for every 15 students, and I think
we're going to achieve that," he said.
In addition, Van Houweling's office
is negotiating with sororities, frate
nities, and co-ops to install computers
in their houses off-campus.
City of the future
"We talk about making this the
university of the future, but we need
to make Ann Arbor the city of the
future because so many of the student
ts and faculty don't live on campus"
Van Houweling said.
Students and faculty can also buy
computers and software at significant
discounts through the University.
Most of the equipment at the Univer-
sity's computing centers can be
bought through special deals at
several local computer stores or at
the University's Microcomputer
Education Center (MEC), which is
located in the School of Education
building.
See 'U', Page 15
4
4
I
CAMPAIGN
WORK
Help the Michigan Citizens Lobby win the bal-
lot proposal to roll back utility rate hikes to pay
for the cost overruns at the Fermi and Midland
nuclear power plants.
Full or Part-time positions available. Paid
training and intern credit possible.
CALL: 663-6824 TODAY!!!
A
": .
j~ik t < f
_
AT
I A I
;'it},fj wp
J
or I
ARTIRVED
CLASS RINGS
Cuts! Perns
color!
I
,
:w
S
g
a,
w.
Sr
U<
U'
ae
-pe-m-
* e .00 .
1,$24Noi
---1
5.
Mdut
Reg. 1200
'$8
guts Kids Cuts'
Reg.~ '60
Nirl sM9STI
rm
W-RW