The Utah Board of Higher Education has a statutory requirement to recommend to the Utah Legislature a combined appropriation request for the operating budgets of higher education institutions. This requirement can be found in Utah Code Section 53B-7-101, Combined requests for appropriations – Board review of operating budgets – Submission of budgets –Recommendations – Hearing request – Appropriation formulas – Allocations – Dedicated credits – Financial affairs. Board Policy R501, Budgeting Definitions and Guidelines, also outlines the Board’s responsibilities regarding budget requests.

The combined budget request includes the following:

• Employee compensation;
• Mandatory costs, including building operations and maintenance, fuel, and power;
• Performance funding;
• Statewide and institutional priorities, including scholarships, financial aid, and technology infrastructure; and
• Enrollment growth.

The higher education budget request is a part of the budget for the state of Utah. In preparing and presenting the budget request, the Board will work with the Governor and the Legislature. The Board will recommend amounts for each institution. The recommended appropriations will be determined by the Board after the Board has reviewed the proposed institutional operating budgets and has consulted with the various institutions and USHE staff. In the combined budget request, the Board will differentiate between appropriations requested for academic education and appropriations requested for technical education.

The Board will provide budget process guidelines to the institutions in August. Initial budget requests from the various institutions are due to the Board in mid-August. Final requests are due to the Board by mid-October. The Board will then work with the Governor and Legislature to refine the request before the legislative session, which begins in January, on the first Tuesday after Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

The budget recommendation of the Board to the Legislature will be accompanied by full explanations and supporting data. The budget recommendation will be made with the following objectives:

• Justifying higher education institutions’ appropriations consistent with their needs and consistent with the financial ability of the state; and
• Determining an equitable distribution of funds among the respective institutions in accordance with the aims and objectives of the statewide master plan for higher education.