Illustration by Josh Hagler

Thursday October 4, 2001

The nation is diving head first into a recession that has only been accelerated by the attack on the World Trade Center. Because of the lagging economy and a large drop in tourism, the state of Arizona may suffer a budget shortage as high as $1.6 billion, according to the governor's office.

The state budget crisis hit home for the University of Arizona recently when Gov. Jane Dee Hull announced at an Arizona Board of Regents meeting last week that the university would lose $14 million in a budget cut.

In response to this announcement, UA President Peter Likins and university officials imposed a hiring freeze. The hiring freeze will keep nearly 500 faculty positions vacant through Dec. 1.

And, most recently, reports have surfaced that the much-anticipated Integrated Learning Center may not open on schedule. In fact, options range from a partial opening to not opening at all.

The university struggles with this new challenge, and students, faculty and administrators realize that changes must be made. Some people hint at tuition increases while others adamantly exhort that it the state holds responsibility and that legislators need to raise taxes. Still others believe the university needs to break contract with building projects and push that money in the direction of professors who may leave for better-paying institutions.

This is a difficult challenge that requires the opinion and insight of the students.

Dorms must be built as planned

Students began this year paying for a full year's worth of a private dorm room and instead they were sleeping in study lounges. From one who spent two awesome years in Yuma Hall, allow me to paint that picture for you:

Fluorescent lighting, four roommates instead of one, uncontrolled heating and cooling, no locks on the door - what a disaster.

Luckily, the students pretended it was like camp and used the opportunity to make new friends. And surely the great and organized department called Residence Life provided locks, room dividers and a way in which to reduce the frigid, meat-locker quality of the study lounges. Right? Right·?

The new budget cuts absolutely should not affect the new dorms in various stages of development. President Likins: Don't even consider it.

If funding is cut, then it must be dealt with. But cutting off housing at the knees is not the answer. The university prides itself on what it offers incoming freshmen, and the attempt at an excellent housing experience must continue to be one of them. The new halls must continue as originally planned.

Laura Winsky is senior majoring in Spanish and political science. She can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.

I'm not going liberal, but we need taxes

This is getting ugly. Every recent front-page headline in the Wildcat pertains to a negative impact on the UA because of the budget crunch, which hit the country hard and filtered into our state and place of higher learning. And there's only one sensible solution: raise taxes.

Yeah, I know, I'm the house conservative. I shouldn't advocate such a thing. Hear me out.

I recently spoke with Peter Goudinoff, an excellent, long-time political science professor here at the UA and a former senator in the Arizona State Legislature. He tells me that raising state income taxes - not sales tax, just income - will be beneficial to practically everyone in Arizona. See, state income tax is deductible from federal taxes, so most Arizonans would actually end up paying less overall. The only problem, according to Goudinoff, is that most people would end up hating the idea.

With sales tax, most people see it as a nickel here and a dime there on goods purchased. With income tax, people actually see the money deducted from what they make, so more people would likely be opposed to an income tax increase than a sales tax hike. If people had to write a check at the end of the month for sales tax, instead of paying it at the same time they buy a product, many would feel differently.

Raising state income taxes would help solve our temporary budget problems and put more money back in most taxpayer's pockets. It makes sense. Now comes the hard part: convincing everyone it is the right way to go.

Shane Dale is a political science sophomore. He can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.

Illustration by Josh Hagler

The answer is: slime-covered slides

A tuition increase is an excellent place to start. If people don't want to pay more to go to school, then they don't have to. If people can't afford to pay more, then they should work harder to get the numerous scholarships, grants and loans that are available to those who deserve them. Either that or they can work harder to earn the money they'd need. Everything is more appreciated if you have to work for it. And that concludes the clichˇ portion of this opinion.

Another thing the university should focus on - dealing with the overpopulation of classes - makes it more difficult to become a student here. As it stands, all you need is a pulse and the ability to speak English. Well... scratch that. Judging from a lot of teaching assistants I've had, you apparently don't really have to know how to speak English so much as know that a language called English exists and can be spoken.

I don't think higher test scores are the answer, because most tests are biased and aren't a good way of determining a persons worth and abilities. Grades also aren't the answer because it has been my experience that they only reflect how much of a cheater you are or how anti-social you are.

So here's what I propose:

Everyone who applies to this school has to play a game of Double Dare. It's the only thing I know that tests all aspects of human ability. If you can answer trivia questions, have the courage to dare your opponents that they don't know something you know AND run up a slide covered with slime, then I would be proud to call you classmate. Someone get Mark Summers on the horn. He's not busy, right?

Zack Armstrong is a creative writing senior. He can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.

This university needs our support

Recently the budget crisis narrowed the issue to one choice for me - a really tough choice that is tearing me up. This university, which I have grown rather fond of - is floundering. We need money, but that's beside the point.

Everyone needs money. UMC and TMC desperately need money; public schools need money; prisons, suicide prevention centers and Hopi senior citizens need money.

And this university needs money. The only reliable way to get it is to raise tuition.

There, I said it. Raise my tuition. Raise the tuition of everyone at this university - especially raise the tuition of out-of-staters. Raise our tuition because we demand a high-quality education. This university is an incredible value. For what we pay, we get an amazing education, and for not one moment should we take that for granted. However, I would rather pay $100 more a year than find out I am receiving a sub-rate education.

The fact remains that it is the state's obligation to provide for this institution. For entirely unforeseeable reasons, our state has a huge budget shortage. Our state officials are not at fault - but they are responsible. If I could have it my way, tuition wouldn't go up 1 cent.

Instead, I hope the state Legislature would realize the only way out of this mess is to raise taxes. But because our state leans to the greedy side and most conservative representatives have an involuntary revulsion to taxes, we may not get them.

There are very good reasons not to raise tuition. Raising tuition places the burden of a budget shortage on the shoulders of struggling students who usually don't have a dime to spare. But it is what we have to do to ensure the health of the UA.

Cory Spiller is a history and creative writing senior. He can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.

From here to the stratosphere

A tired and rugged state of Arizona is banging her head against a budget wall. A nightmarish financial haze surrounds us. The Zeus of Arizona, Gov. Jane D. Hull, must strike her lightning bolt checkbook, and all state programs and employees are running for cover.

Here at the UA, it seems like a battleground. We see teachers striking for unions and construction blocking almost any straight path between classes. Freshmen need dorms; and Zone 1 parking is biting the dust.

And now, Hull wants $14 million cut from our school. President Likins has probably worn a circle in his office from pacing around debating between cutting the budget from the ILC and hiring new teachers.

What to do? I'm not sure. If we raise tuition, it goes against our state constitution declaring public education should be as free as possible. Raising taxes would be great, but that requires hurdling the stubborn conservative wall. Funding for construction projects comes from a separate budget, so unfortunately money for new dorms, parking garages and renovations can't be shifted.

So, I offer to you some possible solutions. First, the UA should declare ownership of the airspace from Euclid Avenue to Campbell Avenue from here to the stratosphere. Then, we can tax Davis-Monthan every time they fly overhead. Second, let's set up a highway turnpike to charge people coming into our state. Third, get our creative writing majors to draft a letter to Bill Gates asking him to donate his account interest.

And finally, can the UA win the California state lottery?

Jessica Lee is an environmental science junior. She can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.