The budget deficit for the Washington State University athletic department is projected to reach $103 million by fiscal 2022.
The WSU Board of Regents was told Friday that the athletic department remains committed to producing a balanced budget by fiscal 2023. The department intends to increase revenues 27 percent by then, while continuing to contain expenses, to achieve a balanced budget.
The $103 million deficit is a $17 million jump over last year’s projection, primarily due to a change in how capital projects are accounted for – in previous years they were not included in the operating budget. Officials say the rest of the increase includes costs for replacing the head basketball coach.
Regents on Friday also approved a 2.4 percent increase to resident and nonresident tuition. The new rates for the 2019-2020 academic year are expected to generate an estimated $5 million in additional annual revenue. The money will help WSU cover increased costs of health insurance and cost‑of‑living increases for faculty, including graduate students, and staff.
State law gives the governing boards of Washington’s public universities the authority to set tuition rates, though a series of economic indicators are used to set restrictions on how much certain tuition categories can be raised in any given year. WSU officials point out that the tuition increase is the first in seven years for graduate and non-resident students.
The Regents also authorized the purchase of a $2.5 million research facility in Othello to serve as the new home of the WSU Honey Bee and Pollinator Research and Education Program. The nearly 50-acre plot of land includes various research and support buildings. (AP, WSU)
