The University administration does not expect the state legislature to make cuts affecting Nicholls’ budget for this semester; however, University officials are taking precautions in order to offset expected state revenue reductions for the next fiscal year.According to University budget officer Linda Peltier, the state legislature reduced the University’s budget by 3.5 percent during the November special session. As a result, the University is now working with a budget of $48.5 million instead more than $49 million before the cut.

“We did not receive any more significant surprises in terms of budget reductions than we anticipated,” University President Stephen Hulbert said. “The Board of Regents and the Commissioner of Higher Education, E. Joseph Savoie, were particularly supportive of the institutions that fall under the University of Louisiana System. As such, we did not take as severe a cut as some of the universities that were impacted by the storms and specifically those in New Orleans.”

Hulbert said that the University put a plan together last fall that allowed Nicholls to cut its expenditures by 5 percent without jeopardizing any of the academic programs.

“We had to make some decisions on how to protect the academic programs this fiscal year,” Hulbert said. “We put in place a 5 percent reduction that was planned by the President’s Cabinet in the fall.” The current fiscal year does not end until June 30.

Hulbert also said that the University continues to implement the economic measures that were put in place last semester and is exploring additional cost-saving measures such as turning off computers when not in use and transitioning some of the University’s publications from a print medium to an electronic one.

In addition to the economic measures, the University is continuing to leave administration, faculty, support and student employment positions vacant, filling only those most important.

The state government has lifted the spending freeze for higher education, but the University continues to closely monitor its expenses.

“When a university opens its doors on July 1, the first day of our fiscal year, we have a full complement of faculty that are under contract in order to provide the classes that you have already registered for,” Hulbert said. “When you have budget cuts that occur as our first one did in December of a fiscal year, five or six months into the year, we have already spent 85 percent of our budget.”

According to Hulbert, the University will meet its faculty requirements for the schedule of classes. As student employment positions become available, the University will consider leaving the position vacant or reducing the amount of hours that can be worked.

Hulbert said that when the budget is cut later in the fiscal year, it is more difficult to find areas in which money can be saved.

“It is harder to make cuts the further you go in an academic year,” Hulbert said. “Less and less money is in the University accounts. It is very difficult to make budget cuts without having an impact on the delivery of services to the students who are enrolled and paying tuition. There will be a discussion of increasing of the fees and tuitions of the students.”

During the fall semester, visiting students were given a deferment of their tuition and fees. Hulbert said that the University has been receiving payments from students, but approximately $400,000 in outstanding revenues remains to be collected. Hulbert said that he is sympathetic to the situation these students are in, but the University has to pay its bills.

In regards to damage caused by evacuees housed in Stopher and Shaver gyms and Betsy Cheramie Ayo Hall, Hulbert said that the University has received an initial payment of $119,000 from the federal government. The University has documented the expenditures, and Hulbert said that the University expects to get almost total reimbursement of its expenses from sheltering hurricane evacuees.