UNIVERSITY BACKS TAX, REFORM PLAN; INSTITUTION TO BEGIN TASK OF EDUCATING VOTERS

An official at Southeast Missouri State University voiced support Tuesday for a $385 million tax-hike-for-education measure that will be submitted to Missouri voters Nov. 5.

If approved by the voters, it would mean an additional $190 million a year in state funding for higher education, and an equal amount for elementary and secondary schools in Missouri.

Southeast could receive from $6.8 to $9.2 million a year in additional funding, said Art Wallhausen, assistant to the president at Southeast.

Southeast President Kala Stroup, who had lobbied legislators in support of increased state funding for higher education, was out of town Tuesday and could not be reached for comment.

While it's less than the $300 million in funding that Missouri's public colleges and universities wanted, Wallhausen said the tax measure will provide badly needed revenue for higher education.

"It would represent a significant bit of relief from the downward trend in higher education's buying power over the last several years," he said.

He added that university officials were pleased that a tax measure was approved by the Missouri General Assembly and received the backing of Gov. John Ashcroft.

"What we wanted to do was to let the voters decide," said Wallhausen.

As to the governor's endorsement of the tax package, Wallhausen said: "I think that will give it the credibility that we need to sell it to the voters."

Wallhausen said Missouri's educators will have to work for passage of the tax measure. "We can't expect the General Assembly to try to sell it for us."

He said officials at Southeast will be working hard over the next several months to educate voters about the tax measure.

"It's going to be a busy summer and fall," he said. "We will be trying to establish information committees throughout the region to get the word out to people as to what it means for the region, the institution and the state.

"It is not going to solve all the problems that Missourians for Higher Education mentioned. But it will go a long way toward solving those problems."

Missourians for Higher Education is a group representing public and private colleges and universities. The organization has said that increased state funding is needed to pay for building maintenance, equipment purchases and reform-minded education programs at Missouri's public colleges and universities, and to provide more scholarships and financial aid for students at both public and private institutions.

"It will be a real significant improvement in the funding for all of our institutions and we certainly are grateful to the legislature for giving the people a chance to vote on it," said Wallhausen.

Under the bill, some new tax money could be made available to colleges and universities for capital improvement needs during the latter half of the 1992 fiscal year. The upcoming fiscal year begins July 1.

But the 1993 fiscal year would be the first full year of increased funding, said Wallhausen.

He added that the amount of revenue that Southeast would receive from the tax hike would fluctuate slightly because of changes in the proportion of the $190 million that would be allocated for specific higher-education categories statewide from the 1993 to the 1996 fiscal years.

The tax package will generate about $385 million the first year but about $459 million by fiscal year 1997.

Wallhausen said the estimates of funding for Southeast are based solely on the $190 million figure for higher education, even though that figure is expected to increase as tax revenues increase.

The largest share of the money more than $105 million statewide would be used to refine college programs and improve student achievement.

It's estimated that Southeast could annually receive from $5.8 million to $6.3 million to fund such improvements.

Under the tax measure, Southeast could also receive $785,000 to slightly more than $1 million annually for building and equipment maintenance and equipment purchases.

More than $1 million annually could go for financial aid for Southeast students through the Missouri Student Grant Program, Wallhausen said.

He emphasized that these funding figures for Southeast are only estimates.

The education measure includes a number of reforms, both for higher education, and elementary and secondary education.

In terms of higher education, Wallhausen said the tax measure will benefit all of Missouri and not just Southeast Missouri State. "What we are trying to say is that for the good of the state and its future, we need to invest in higher education."