The Board of Trustees of Illinois State University approved the University’s annual operating budget of $479.2 million for FY2020 during its October 2019 meeting, and authorized expenditures from tentative budget allocations before state appropriations for FY2020 were known.
The Board of Trustees also approved an FY2021 appropriated operating budget request of $76.6 million and a capital appropriation request of $435.4 million. The requests are based on the University’s strategic plan, Educate • Connect • Elevate, and will allow the University to address critical statewide goals for higher education.
The operations request of $76.6 million represents a 10 percent increase over the prior year appropriation. University officials feel this is a reasonable step given the cumulative financial assistance needed to help alleviate the negative impact of reduced state appropriations.
The Board also approved issuing a new series of certificates of participation to refinance a 2008 series used to pay for portions of the Student Fitness Center, a new power plant, and a human resources information system. The new series of certificates will be in an amount not to exceed $13 million to finance the debt and pay costs of the issuing the new certificates. Annual debt service payments will decrease because of the lower interest rates currently available in the market. The estimated savings is expected to exceed $750,000 over the life of the new debt.
The Board also authorized a six-month extension of its current contract with Connect Transit for transportation services, a contract extension with Interstate Municipal Gas Company, a two-year agreement with Air Planning, LLC for the provision of air charter transportation to athletic competitions, a three-year contract with Dean Dairy Holdings, LLC for milk and other dairy products, and an intergovernmental agreement with the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) for the provision of training to the members of the Board of Trustees.
