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2004 SESSION

043731772
SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 87
Offered January 14, 2004
Establishing a joint subcommittee to study the future of Virginia's public Institutions of higher education.
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Patrons-- Mims, Cuccinelli, Howell, Lambert, O'Brien, Puller, Saslaw and Ticer; Delegates: Rust, Albo, Amundson, Black, Bryant, Dillard, Hull, Jones, S.C., May, Morgan, Petersen, Plum and Scott, J.M.
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Referred to Committee on Rules
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WHEREAS, the Bill of Rights of the Constitution of Virginia reflects the Commonwealth's commitment to providing for an educated citizenry, acknowledging that "free government rests, as does all progress, upon the broadest possible diffusion of knowledge, and that the Commonwealth should avail itself of those talents which nature has sown so liberally among its people by assuring the opportunity for their fullest development by an effective system of education throughout the Commonwealth"; and

WHEREAS, echoing this commitment is Article VIII, § 9 of the Constitution of Virginia, which authorizes the General Assembly to "provide for the establishment, maintenance, and operation of any educational institutions which are desirable for the intellectual, cultural, and occupational development of the people of this Commonwealth"; and

WHEREAS, today, the Commonwealth boasts a thriving system of public higher education, comprised of 15 public comprehensive and doctoral research institutions, one junior college, and 22 community colleges; and

WHEREAS, supporting these institutions are about $1.3 billion in state general funds, $869 million in tuition and fees, and more than $500 million in federal and private resources; and

WHEREAS, the system of higher education also is characterized by state-level coordination by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia, the state agency directed to "promote the development and operation of an educationally and economically sound, vigorous, progressive, and coordinated system of higher education in the Commonwealth" pursuant to § 23-9.3 of the Code of Virginia, as well as by its high regard for institutional autonomy; and

WHEREAS, about 82 percent of the Commonwealth's nearly 382,000 students pursuing postsecondary education attend a public college or university; and

WHEREAS, between 2001 and 2011, the number of Virginia high school graduates is projected to increase by nearly 25 percent, and, in 2000, approximately half of recent high school graduates enrolled in higher education; and

WHEREAS, balancing the demands of anticipated enrollment increases, institutional research, and funding constraints with its longstanding commitment to affordability and access in higher education presents a formidable challenge to the Commonwealth in the coming decades; and

WHEREAS, it has been nearly a decade since the work of the 1994 Commission on the Future of Higher Education (SJR 139) presented its report (SD 26) to the Governor and the 1996 Session of the General Assembly; and

WHEREAS, further legislative review is necessary to address the complex challenges facing our public institutions and to identify and implement any necessary changes so essential to maintain a system of public higher education of the highest quality; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That a joint subcommittee be established on the future of Virginia's public institutions of higher education. The joint subcommittee shall be composed of 20 members as follows: six members of the House of Delegates, to be appointed by the Speaker of the House, in accordance with the principles of proportional representation contained in the Rules of the House of Delegates; four members of the Senate, to be appointed by the Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections; four presidents of a Virginia public two- or four-year institution of higher education, two each to be appointed by the Speaker of the House and the Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections; three citizen members who are or who have been members of the governing bodies of a Virginia public two- or four-year institution of higher education, two to be appointed by the Speaker of the House and one by the Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections; and the Secretary of Education, the Director of the State Council of Higher Education, the Chancellor of the Virginia Community College System, or their designees, all to serve ex officio with full voting privileges. The chairman of the joint subcommittee shall be a member of the Virginia General Assembly.

Nonlegislative citizen members of the joint subcommittee shall be citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Unless otherwise approved in writing by the chairman of the joint subcommittee and the respective Clerk, nonlegislative citizen members shall only be reimbursed for travel originating and ending within the Commonwealth of Virginia for the purpose of attending meetings. If a companion joint resolution of the other chamber is agreed to, written authorization of both Clerks shall be required. The joint subcommittee shall elect a chairman and vice chairman from among its membership, who shall be members of the General Assembly.

In conducting its study, the joint subcommittee shall consider, among other things, (i) access to Virginia's public institutions and projected enrollments; (ii) tuition and fee considerations and the availability of student financial aid from public and private sources; (iii) capital construction challenges and the feasibility of enhancing distance learning opportunities; (iv) faculty recruitment and retention; (v) admissions policies and minority access; and (vi) such other issues as it deems appropriate.

The direct costs of this study shall not exceed $12,100, in each year of the study.

The Division of Legislative Services shall provide staff support for the study. All agencies of the Commonwealth shall provide assistance to the joint subcommittee, upon request.

The joint subcommittee shall submit an interim report of its findings and recommendations to the Governor and the 2005 Session of the General Assembly, and shall complete its work by November 30, 2005, and submit its final written findings and recommendations to the 2006 Session of the General Assembly, as provided in the procedures of the Division of Legislative Automated Systems for the processing of legislative documents.

Implementation of this resolution is subject to subsequent approval and certification by the Joint Rules Committee. The Committee may withhold expenditures or delay the period for the conduct of the study.