By Sarah Mayhew

Arizona Daily Wildcat

PHOENIX _

niversity officials and regents feared they

might lose control of their universities when the legislative session began in January with at least eight proposals that would have mandated decisions normally left to the individual schools.

Now, with two weeks left in the 100-day session, most of the bills that had worried administrators either died, were not discussed or have been significantly changed.

Two others still have a chance to become law, but with committees wrapping up and legislators pushing to finish early, the legislation could be left behind.

And while university faculty and staff failed to get a large portion of their requested raises, the overall university system budget received a 23 percent increase, the largest boost in at least five years.

The University of Arizona will receive $227.2 million and almost $30 million for agricultural programs. In all, about $5.2 million more than this year's budget. The Arizona Health Sciences Center will receive about $47 million.

Arizona State University will receive $290.7 million for its main campus and ASU-West in Glendale. Northern Arizona University will get about $100 million for its main campus and NAU-Yuma.

All three schools received funding for projects to prepare for an expected surge of 55,000 students into the state university system by the year 2010. ASU received all $2.1 million requested to open a second branch campus in Mesa. UA and NAU each received $1.5 million for their projects.

Though the Legislature failed to pass bills dictating graduation or tuition requirements, some university supporters say that students and faculty should remember the message sent by the bills because they may be back next year.

Many of the bills in question were introduced only to make a statement, but some of the sponsors were serious.

Patrick McWhortor, executive director of the statewide student lobbying group, Arizona Students' Association, said a bill that would have required all in-state students with 12 or more units than required for their degree to pay out-of-state tuition probably will be introduced again next

"There's a lot of people out there that still think that's a good idea (including both the House of Representatives and Senate Appropriations committee leaders who sponsored the bill)," McWhortor said. "I would say don't forget about it."

The proposals worrying administrators would have mandated curriculum, tuition rates, admissions and graduation requirements and would have altered the Arizona Board of Regents_decisions usually left up to the board or the state's individual universities.

Of those proposals, three bills dictating admissions and graduations requirements for the UA and ASU law schools never reached committee. The bill making all in-state students with 12 or more units over the requirements for their degrees pay out-of-state tuition also died without discussion.

Rep. Jeff Groscost, R-Mesa, said he sponsored the law school bill to make a point and scare university

"They weren't anything more," Groscost said. He said he and some of his onstituents were angry because the ASU law school admitted convicted murderer James Hamm last fall.

"Obviously the intent was to tweak some folks, and we did that," Groscost said. He also said he hoped the legislation would encourage the schools to create night law schools so that more Arizonans could attend.

While the state university system has not seen a proliferation of university-related legislation in many years, this year's legislation came to regents and student lobbyists without surprise.

"It's been happening more and more," Munger said.

McWhortor said although such proposals were not abundant during the last legislative session, they are nothing new.

"It's cyclical," he said. "Every few years there are a batch of proposals."

Disappointment with the universities is a "general attitude among some legislators," McWhortor said.

In the past, legislators either left office, became more educated about university-related decision making or the regents responded to the issues in question before any legislation was required, he added.

But Regent Art Chapa said the root of the university-related legislation is more than a general

"Elected officials get frustrated with things that are going on," Chapa said. He called the bills a "normal reaction to the problem."

UA President Manuel T. Pacheco echoed Chapa's sentiments, saying legislators became frustrated in trying to implement their own moral and political agendas.

He said legislators often try to influence the process, but that should not be a problem for regents or university officials. Still, Pacheco said his biggest concern would be if state legislators succeeded in controlling areas normally left to the individual schools.

Yet, several bill sponsors said in January their constituents are concerned that the universities spend taxpayers' money inefficiently and have fallen down on the job of educating.

"That feeling has been there for a long, long time," said Regent John Munger.

A campus safety bill that would have required all university students to take a campus safety class to graduate died on the Senate floor. Still, before that it was amended so that the universities were "encouraged" to develop the class rather than required.

Another bill that would have granted ASU about $2 million to open a second branch campus at the former Williams Air Force Base was stripped of the funding because UA and Northern Arizona University supporters refused to provide the money without equal funds for the other two universities.

To solve the problem, Speaker of the House Mark Killian, R-Mesa, the sponsor of the bill, negotiated to get funding for all of the schools through the budget.

The requirements of a bill that would have made all primary care medical students at the UA College of Medicine complete an internship in a rural Arizona community were reduced so that now only 50 percent of each class must complete the rotation.

And a bill that would increase the number of appointed Arizona Board of Regents members from nine to 12 has been resurrected three times in the Senate.

Three weeks ago, the bill died in the Senate twice in one day, but the legislators agreed to take another roll-call

While the bill still has not been heard, Sen. Bev Hermon, R-Tempe, who sponsored the bill, said that it definitely will be heard one more time. Under the legislation, two of the three new members would have to have ASU degrees and the other an NAU degree.

The final Senate vote must be taken for the bill to go on to the House of Representatives.

Regardless of whether politicians are justified in trying to change university and regents policies they dislike or distrust, regents say the situation should be remedied in other ways.

"What we need to do is rely on the board to do its job and the university presidents to do their jobs," Chapa said.

In recent years, the board has delegated more and more authority to the presidents to avoid over-managing the system's three main campuses and the three branch campuses, Chapa said.

The Legislature should follow the regents' example and trust university officials to get things done, he said.

Still, Regent John Munger had another idea.

Legislators and regents should sit down and discuss the issues concerning taxpayers and politicians so regents can make the ultimate decisions, he said. Read Next Article