Legislative leaders are criticizing the University of Connecticut for moving forward with raises for its senior staff despite the state's budget problems. The pay increases come at a time when UConn students will see a 31 percent tuition hike over the next four years.
UConn said the raises were approved in 2013 and 2014 and are meant to bring the salaries of top staff in line with those at peer institutions.
But legislative leaders, like Senate President Martin Looney, say the move shows how shockingly isolated the university is from what’s going on in state government.
Speaking on WNPR’s Where We Live, Looney said moving forward with the pay increases will have two potential consequences for UConn. The first is that the legislature will be more skeptical of UConn administrators on budget-related issues next year.
"The other potential harm would be that the backlash against this might cause legislators that want to reduce, to some extent, UConn’s autonomy over their own budget and have some more direct control over the operations of UConn in terms of its operating budget and how decisions get made," said Looney.
Looney said he’d consider proposing a bill next legislative session that would give lawmakers more control of the university’s operating budget. He has also asked UConn President Susan Herbst to rescind the raises, but hasn’t heard back.
According to a CT Mirror report, Herbst is on track to receive nearly $195,000 in raises and bonuses this year under her contract.
In a statement, UConn said, “This small number of leadership salaries have no meaningful impact on UConn’s overall budget, workforce, or tuition rates.”
Meanwhile, the state’s budget problems have led to hundreds of state layoffs.