Higher ed funding could increase

Public universities may soon see a bump in state funding due to a new formula lawmakers have created to fund higher education.

Senate Bill 2200 was passed to the House unanimously, which would change the higher education funding formula to be based on the number of credits completed rather than a mixture of various campus elements which is currently in use.

The bill only addresses the change to the higher education funding formula and does not include any funding for capital projects or university system funds.

The bill’s prime sponsor, Sen. Tim Flakoll, R-Fargo, said the formula is transparent, consistent, comprehensive and easy to understand.

The new formula would take a base dollar amount that would vary depending on kind of institution — two-year schools, such as Bismarck State College, would receive $117 per credit; Dickinson State University and other four-year regional campuses, $110 per credit; and North Dakota State University and the University of North Dakota would each receive $72 per credit — and multiply that by the number of credit hours earned by students at the school.

The formula also factors in the higher cost of some programs, such as nursing; the fact that larger schools can operate more efficiently; and the physical size of the school’s campus.

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