Frankfort, KY:   Governor Ernie Fletcher remains concerned about the tuition increase which was announced by the UK Board of Trustees.

The $16.7 million taken from UK's restricted funds to help balance the state budget crisis was a one time assessment that is non-recurring in future years.  Additionally, the 2.5% budget reduction affected the University's baseline budget by approximately 5 million.  Governor Fletcher believes the 5 million should have been used to judge the tuition increase, not the one time $16.7 million which came out of already existing University reserves.

Governor Fletcher stated, "As I said yesterday, I commend UK President Lee Todd on the job he has done in the savings he has already made, but all universities must continue to look inward to make sure they are operating as efficiently as possible.”

The Governor concluded, "With tax modernization, we can help solve the state's budget woes.  We can then continue to improve the education system for all Kentuckians as well as bring in more jobs and economic growth.”

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