Just one day after the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia approved a plan to increase budget cuts from 6 to 8 percent due to continuing declines in state revenue, University of West Georgia President Dr. Beheruz Sethna called a special meeting Wednesday for all staff and faculty to explain the impact the cuts will have at the university.

He told the employees in the packed room that Georgia’s revenue, 85 percent of which comes from individual income tax and sales and use tax, is still suffering under the double-digit unemployment rate. Each of the first four months of fiscal year 2010 has seen a drop in revenue from fiscal year 2009, a 15.1 percent decline from what was already a bad economic year.

Last year, the university lost approximately $6 million of its state funding, a total of 12 percent of its budget. With these cuts, it is losing another 8 percent.

“Today we are at 20 percent – 20 percent of our state allocation has been reduced from May of 2008 to today,” Sethna said. “Twenty percent is $10 million. ... No institution, certainly none of our size, can weather a $10 million cut without very serious pain.”

Earlier this school year, the university system had to cut 6 percent of its budget, and the Board of Regents had instituted six furlough days for all employees. This time, to make up the additional 2 percent, the regents added a graduated fee for the universities – UWG students will see a $100 increase in the fee. The students first saw a mandatory fee added to their university bill in fiscal year 2009. At that time, the fee for UWG students was $100. With this increase, the fee will double to $200. The fee, which is supposed to be a temporary measure, is scheduled to expire on June 30, 2012.

“This plan was made in August,” Sethna said. “We were expecting, if we went here, to have an additional $150. Yesterday the board decided to trim that back because of the burden on students.”

That leaves the university system shouldering 86 percent of the cuts through institutional cuts, furlough days and insurance changes. The students are shouldering 14 percent of the burden.

But Sethna doesn’t believe this will be the end of the cuts.

“I’m not at all confident that the year will end with an 8 percent budget cut,” he said.

One way to combat that is not to spend all the money the university has been allocated, to hold off on some less pressing expenditures in case of more cuts. However, he could not rule out more furloughs.

“Philosophically, I am opposed to furloughs,” Sethna said. “Furloughs, which I used to say was my last resort, I now say that layoffs are my last resort.”

The faculty and staff, who seemed to be resigned to furloughs, threw out ideas to soften the blow of the lost wages. One employee suggested preemptive furloughs with the savings being put into an escrow account used only if more furloughs are mandated. That would save year-round employees from shouldering the entire burden if furlough days weren’t mandated until late in the year. Another asked about graduating the number of furlough days to minimize the impact on lower paid employees. Another suggested four-day work weeks in the summer to save money on utilities.

Nothing is off the table, Sethna told the employees.

“This is incredibly tough stuff,” he said. “We are doing, you are doing some great work. You’re doing this under extremely adverse conditions. ... We cannot let the pain of today get in the way of the vision of tomorrow.”