Boren Wants State's Rainy Day Fund Tapped For Colleges

Associated Press

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- University of Oklahoma President David Boren wants the state to tap into its rainy day fund to help fund higher education.

Boren says there is approximately $600 million in the fund, and it should be used in hard financial times like these.

Higher education officials plan to request $80.4 million in additional funding next year to prevent another rise in tuition rates. However, the state is expected to have $309 million less in revenue to spend next year.

The combination makes for a difficult budget situation as colleges request $1.18 billion in total funding.

Higher education Chancellor Glen Johnson will travel across the state next month to make his case for the investment in the state's colleges.