Governor’s cuts to higher education stifle a proven economic engine

A new report by his own administration makes it clear that the governor’s $703 million cut to higher education is a dreadfully wrong choice. The Department of Labor’s Division of Research and Statistics concluded in their March edition of "Employment in New York State" that higher education is a major component of the engine that drives New York’s economy.

"[S]uch figures cannot account for the substantial secondary economic effects generated by college and university-related spending. These secondary effects are often much larger than the immediate direct effects of college spending and prove crucial to the economic health of the surrounding community."

And, the Department of Labor noted, their figures don’t factor in the ripple effect of on-campus student jobs or the money spent by colleges in the community.

This evidence proves how higher education affects our state’s many local economies. Colleges and universities provide jobs, create revenue for local economies, and prepare our youth for an increasingly high-tech job-market. But the governor’s cuts to higher education would drain the vitality out of many communities – continuing the downward spiral New York has faced under the governor’s failed economic policies. The Assembly and Senate realize the importance of higher education, as does his own Department of Labor – why doesn’t the governor?

Upstate economies depend on higher education

Many Upstate economies have been hit hard by the erosion of their local manufacturing base under Pataki’s failed policies of the present. Colleges and universities have been an economic stabilizer in these local economies. Most rural counties have a high proportion of their employment and wages concentrated in higher education. For example, the Department of Labor reports that Tompkins County has nearly 32 percent of employment in its higher education system alone.

As we actively pursue more out-of-state high-tech businesses to come to New York, we need to ensure that our workforce is well-prepared. Our colleges and universities are getting our students ready for these jobs while simultaneously driving our economies.

State colleges and universities already feel the pain of the governor’s cuts

Across the state, many institutions of higher education have begun to cut staff because of the governor’s lack of support. Rockland Community College has already laid off 55 employees. In Central New York, Cornell University is bracing for up to 300 lay-offs. Just a few miles from the Capitol, University at Albany department heads are cutting some part-time professors for the fall semester. These cuts to faculty will result in more competition for seats in classes – forcing many students to attend school longer than planned. But they can’t count on any help from the governor who has consistently tried to penalize students who don’t graduate within four years. And now he is making it more difficult for them to finish on time.

The Assembly and Senate are trying to avert the damage the governor’s proposal inflicts on New York’s higher education system and the communities it supports. We urge the governor to see the importance of our colleges and universities and join us in supporting a world class higher education system in New York.