The president of the University of Maryland at College Park said Monday that he is considering closing the campus for a day to help the state deal with an estimated $200 million revenue shortfall in fiscal 2009.
“I understand this is not welcome news to [University of Maryland] employees and their families, and it is not an outcome that any of us wanted,” President C.D. Mote Jr. said in an apologetic, campuswide e-mail.
The University System of Maryland’s flagship campus would close temporarily if Gov. Martin O’Malley, a Democrat, proceeds with a plan he announced last week to furlough state employees to save money and if the university can arrange for all employees to take a day of unpaid leave at the same time.
The Senate Executive Committee, which represents College Park’s faculty, students and staff, said the other 10 campuses in the system likely will take similar measures.
“The budget situation is becoming clearer in Annapolis, and it is looking pretty clear we are going to have to return some of money that has been allocated to the university,” said Ken Holum, chairman of the University Senate. “We prefer this through furloughs rather than layoffs.”
He said the university system imposed furloughs in 1992.
The College Park campus’s 2008 budget is $1.53 billion, including $426 million in state appropriations.
Mr. Mote expects specific budget-reduction figures from the O’Malley administration within two weeks and said the furloughs would be scheduled after the holidays and not during classes.
“It is all in the proposal stage,” O’Malley spokesman Shaun Adamec said. “Nothing has been approved yet, but if the furloughs were to go through, the university system would participate.”
The governor’s tentative plan calls for furloughing roughly 67,000 of the state’s 80,000 employees and would save the state at least $34 million.
Employees making less than $40,000 annually would be off for two days. Those making more than $40,000 a year would take off four days.
Mr. Mote warned faculty, staff and students that next year’s budget could be worse but assured them he also will lose pay.
“I plan to take five furlough days as expected by the governor’s plan for all non-university state employees earning more than $60,000,” he said.
The plan does not include emergency medical and public-safety employees. Maryland governors do not control the pay of those working in the legislative and judicial branches of state government.
“Although the current economic times are unsettling, we will weather this period just as we have done so many times in the past,” Mr. Mote said.
The campus has 13,080 employees, including 5,771 staffers and 2,967 full-time faculty members. The number of students is 37,000.
“They’re taking a day off, but they’re probably still going to be working, still going to be doing everything they need to do, just not getting paid for it,” said Bryan Hammond, 23, a senior majoring in mechanical engineering. “It’s very unfortunate.”
Mr. O’Malley said he recently met with state union leaders to discuss the plan. They could not be reached Monday for comment.
The governor has cut state spending by roughly $2.2 billion since taking office in January 2007.
The Board of Public Works - composed of Mr. O’Malley, Comptroller Peter Franchot and Treasurer Nancy K. Kopp - cut nearly $300 million in October from the state general fund.
“This is probably the worst I’ve seen,” said Howard Fribush, a professor of organic chemistry who has been at the university for 20 years. “They’ve always been able to pay the salaries, but there have always been funding issues. It’s probably needed. It’s probably better than complete layoffs.”
— Timothy Warren contributed to this report.
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