AASCU Government Relations (American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU), 2017-01-01)
In early 2017, higher education leaders in many states confronted challenging policy environments due to the return of sizable state budget deficits. While much of the nation’s attention is fixated on Washington, with the inauguration and immediate actions of the president-elect, state-level elected officials are sworn in and renew their work on economic development, education, transportation, health care, and other traditional state-level policy issues. With a national slowdown in state tax revenues and many states facing budget gaps, governors and state legislators will explore solutions to balance holding the line on taxes and maintaining state investments. As a discretionary state budget item, higher education will be among lawmakers’ top targets to balance state budgets.