CSUN will need to count on increased fees to balance the budget, an administration report presented at the Faculty Senate meeting on Thursday indicates.

“After the budget preparation that we did last year, we are in good stead this year. We really believe that we need to count on a fee increase next year to balance salary increases as well as what we can anticipate-a downturn in tax revenues due to crash-pardon the word-of the housing market,” Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Harold Hellenbrand’s report indicates.

“I realize there is contention about executive salaries, but however you view those, the increases do not match up with what is needed to fill the gap,” the report indicates.

Hellenbrand wasn’t in attendance, but Associate Vice President for Undergraduate Studies Cynthia Rawitch presented his report and took questions from the senate.

History professor Charles Macune, Jr. urged the Senate to find another way when he said, “One is expected to do one’s duty. The duty of the state is to fund the CSU.”

“You are asking the students to pay for the executives salary,” Macune said.

Macune gave the analogy of a family man who decides to enter into a marriage and have children. A man cannot decide to partially fund his family because it is a “moral responsibility,” Macune said.

Associated Students President Adam Haverstock said to Rawitch that he didn’t think the administration would be in favor of a fee increase.

“Harry’s a realist. He feels that’s what will happen,” said Rawitch. Hellenbrand doesn’t support the increase, Rawitch said.

Haverstock read the second sentence aloud and said, “That sounds like supporting it to me.”

“He didn’t intend to support,” said Rawitch. Hellenbrand had sought other ways to balance the budget instead of a fee increase, but “resigned to the choice,” Rawitch said.

Haverstock said he hoped the Faculty Senate would be in accord with the California State Student Association in urging the administration to ask the Board of Trustees to request providing funding above the CSU compact budget and request a larger base budget.

A recent California Faculty Association report shows that the state’s budget includes a 4 percent base budget increase of $108.9 million, and $65.5 million with a 2.5 percent enrollment increase. The budget indicates that an additional $123 million would be generated from a proposed 10 percent tuition increase. Haverstock said the CSU enrollment increase is at about 4.5 percent, about double the amount the state estimated.

The EEC Subcommittee on Recruitment and Retention of Underrepresented Faculty gave a presentation on the steps they were taking to determine the substantial turnover rate of minorities on campus that’ll include an exit interview.

“They may have found a better job and not the reasons we think,” said Peter Nwosu, chair of the subcommittee.

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