Gov. Gavin Newsom signed California’s state budget for the upcoming fiscal year Monday, increasing the UC’s funding to $350 million.
The budget also preserves a nearly $130 million deferral to the University until the 2027-28 fiscal year. Both provisions were included in Newsom’s original budget proposal in January.
The funding increase upholds the UC and California State University compact, which promises the universities an annual 5% budget increase for five years in exchange for enrolling more California residents and improving graduation rates, according to EdSource.
The California State Legislature approved a state budget June 15 before entering negotiations with Newsom. Newsom’s deadline to sign the budget was Wednesday, which marks the start of a new fiscal year.
[Related: State legislature passes budget with funding increase for UC]
UC President James Milliken said in an emailed statement that the funding increase will help the University foster economic mobility and scientific growth across California.
“The 7% increase from the state goes a long way toward fulfilling the compact and providing the funding necessary to educate and invest in our students,” he said.
The funding increase is important due to recent federal funding cuts, Milliken added in the statement.
The Trump administration froze $584 million in UCLA’s research grants from the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation and United States Department of Energy in July. The federal government alleged that the university allowed antisemitism, affirmative action and “men to participate in women’s sports.”
A federal judge temporarily restored most of the grants in August and September. The judge separately ruled in November that the Trump administration could not freeze or threaten to freeze the UC’s research funding.
[Related: Federal government suspends research funding to UCLA]
The state budget prioritizes healthcare and housing, said Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel, chair of the Assembly Budget Committee, in an emailed statement.
The budget lowers the asset threshold to be eligible for Medi-Cal and increases funding for affordable housing programs, according to the Los Angeles Times.
“California is delivering a budget rooted in compassion, fiscal responsibility, and opportunity for all,” Gabriel said in the statement.
However, Scott Graves, the budget director of the California Budget and Policy Center, said in an emailed statement that he believes that the budget does not completely address the affordability challenges Californians face.
“While the budget takes some steps toward ensuring corporations in California pay their fair share, it stops short of advancing the bold, sustainable revenue solutions needed to make investments that would help alleviate Californians’ affordability challenges,” he said in the statement.
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