Kaine announces layoffs, higher ed cuts to close shortfall
By: David Sherfinski
Examiner Staff Writer
September 9, 2009
 |
| (AP) |
Virginia will eliminate nearly 1,000 jobs, slash funds for higher education, and institute a one-day furlough for state employees to meet a fiscal 2010 revenue shortfall of $1.35 billion, Gov. Tim Kaine announced Tuesday.
The plan calls for 593 layoffs in a state government workforce of about 102,000. In addition, 336 positions would be frozen, bringing the total to 929.
"It's a tough job market if you lose your job, and we're very mindful of that," Kaine said.
The main goal was to protect K-12 education, the governor said.
"It's not easy for anybody to cut," but that needed to be the top priority, he said.
Higher education was a different story. Kaine proposed cuts of up to 15 percent for higher education, though he said he planned to use federal stimulus funds to reduce the cut to 7.7 percent on average for colleges and universities.
Still, there aren't many universities saying they could manage a 7.7 percent fund reduction just through tuition increases, Kaine said.
