The actions of the 1997 NC General Assembly and the UNC Board of Governors (BOG) resulted in modifications of the funding support for UNCA. This document summarizes our state funding for the 1997-98 year,including salaries, operations, repairs and renovations and capital allocations.
 

Salaries

The 4.0% salary increase for SPA (staff) and EPA (faculty and administrators) state employees was provided with stipulations about eligibility relating to hiring dates and performance.

This year no increase was designated for faculty for recognition of teaching excellence.
 

Operations Budget

The operations budget provides for on-going support for instruction, the library, equipment, all state personnel, day-to-day expenses and some mandated activities. The operations budget for the past four years has been designated as follows:

                1994-95      1995-96      1996-97      1997-98

General fund    19,443,695   20,247,416   20,195,410   21,259,447
(from state)

Receipts*        4,389,116    4,351,219    4,583,971    4,758,189

Total           23,832,811   24,598,635   24,779,381   26,017,636

*This amount is estimated by the BOG. Receipts in excess can be retained; shortfalls must be accommodated within. Therefore, enrollment impacts the actual funding that is available.

This year's operations budget, as approved for UNCA and distributed by the BOG on September 12, and a summary of corresponding budgets for the constituent institutions of the UNC system, can be obtained at the Ramsey Library Reference Desk. Note that adjustments for enrollment resulted in a decrease of $11,090 for UNCA. Also keep in mind that UNCA serves as the fiscal agent for the NC Arboretum, so a portion of the total is designated for the Arboretum. For 1997-98, the Arboretum's state operations allocation amounts to approximately $1.6 M.
 

Repairs and Renovations

A total of $1,351,700 was provided for repairs and renovations; the projects that can be funded from this source are defined by the BOG. Campus priorities are reviewed by the University Planning Council and approved by the UNCA Board of Trustees. A list of the uses approved for this in 1997-98 is attached.
 

Capital Allocations

The completion of Karpen Hall, the top campus priority, was funded with $792,700. In addition, the General Assembly designated $500,000 for the Kellogg Center.
 

Additional Comments

Each year the overall state appropriations are distributed among the organizational units on campus and a reserve is retained. The reserve is held until spring,when receipts are finalized and expenditures are known. In the past, part of the reserve has been applied to the state- required reversion of 2% of state-allocated funds. This year, each institution is permitted to retain half of this sum (which is $213,000 for UNCA) for support of technology and libraries. Typically equipment dollars for non-instructional uses comprise the majority of the reserve; salary funds for on-going employees cannot be reserved, and operations funds must be distributed early to permit day-to-day activities. As the year passes and both revenues and expenses are better known, the reserve is released for equipment and other one-time expenditures. At the end of the year, the balance is carried forward and applied to campus needs via the spending flexibility provided to the Chancellor through our designation among the Special Responsibility Constituent Institutions.

This year, two staffing changes impacted our funding. Additional funds in the sum of $29,249 were provided as a line item for a portion of a staff member for the Office of Institutional Research. In addition, to comply with the unfunded mandate for at least a half-time internal auditor, the Chancellor designated $19,179 to upgrade the position of an existing member of the staff.