Amid the current economic crisis, many public budgets are facing cuts. Pennsylvania's is no exception.
In the proposed Pennsylvania budget for next year, Gov. Ed Rendell will reduce funding to Penn's School of Veterinary Medicine by 10 percent, or almost $4 million.
Rendell spokesman Chuck Ardo said the administration was "looking at every line of the budget" and targeting allocations that do not directly affect the "health and welfare of Pennsylvanians."
He added that Rendell cares about higher education and appreciates that Pennsylvania needs a workforce that is well-educated.
Ardo said the economic outlook for the state is pessimistic and he anticipates further budget declines in the "next year or two."
Pennsylvania may receive funding through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act being discussed in the U.S. Senate, but it is not set in stone at this point.
The stimulus is in "tremendous flux," Ardo said, and how much the state would get and "under what rules we would operate" is not yet known.
Penn's Office of Government and Community Affairs is at the forefront of dealings with the state government.
The office's vice president, Jeff Cooper, said, "We don't know what the final budget will be," and there will be negotiation about the cuts to Penn's allocations.
He explained that the budget reclassified some of Penn's medical programs in the Department of Public Welfare rather than of Public Education.
This reclassification makes the programs eligible for federal funding. As a result, they will no longer be funded by the commonwealth.
He added that, because the state does not write five- or 10-year budget projections, it is difficult to predict what will happen after this year.
The Vet School is a special case because it is the only one of its kind in Pennsylvania and a large part of its budget comes from the state, Cooper said.
The Vet School's Office of Budget and Finance Chief Financial Officer Maureen Harrigan said, "Our mission is to serve students and they will not feel the brunt of this."
She said vet schools in other states are also facing budget cuts - they are all "feeling the pinch of the economy through state contributions."
Harrigan said the Vet School will admit a full class this year and keep tuition fees in line with previous years.
University spokeswoman Lori Doyle said the cuts are going to be particularly challenging for the Vet School, which is important for Pennsylvania's "economically important agricultural and horse-racing industries."
She said Penn had feared an even worse budget cut and would be working with Rendell and the state's General Assembly over the next few months as the budget is finalized.
