Editorial: Master Plan should mandate state contributions, pension funding

An update to the Master Plan for Higher Education in California must establish realistic expectations for the state’s contribution to higher education and hold the legislature accountable to its responsibility to fund higher education in California.

Currently, a majority of the University of California’s budget is made up of student tuition, an absurdity for what is supposed to be a public education system. The Master Plan should include a provision that mandates state contribution of a specific proportion of the University’s core funds.

Since the plan was first signed in 1960, five California State Universities and three UCs have been founded and some community colleges are preparing to offer bachelor degrees. As California higher education evolves, so must the state’s funding model.

When UC leaders asked Gov. Jerry Brown for much-needed funding, their pleas were ignored. Both Brown and the UC Board of Regents have ignored the outdated Master Plan for too long and now students are forced to shoulder the financial burden. Updating the Master Plan and creating a provision for mandated state contributions would ameliorate the funding problems that have arisen in California public education over the past few decades.

The state must accept its obligation to fund public education, including support for the UC Retirement Plan. Rising pension costs stand as one of the largest threats to the UC’s long-term financial security, with the UC and its employees paying millions into a pension program that has billions of dollars in unfunded liability, partially due to state disinvestment.

Mass student protests and administrators’ appeals have done little so far to reform the state’s financial negligence when it comes to education. The relationship between the state and educational institutions needs a drastic change and updating the Master Plan is the first step.