MINUTES OF THE
HIGHER EDUCATION APPROPRIATIONS SUBCOMMITTEE
Friday, February 14, 2020 • 8:00 a.m. • 445 State Capitol


Members Present:
Sen. Keith Grover, Senate Chair
Rep. Michael K. McKell, House Chair
Rep. Susan Duckworth, House Vice Chair
Sen. Deidre M. Henderson
Sen. Lyle W. Hillyard
Sen. Karen Mayne
Sen. Ann Millner
Sen. Jerry W. Stevenson
Rep. Melissa G. Ballard
Rep. Jon Hawkins
Rep. Kelly B. Miles
Rep. Candice B. Pierucci
Rep. Rex P. Shipp
Rep. Mark A. Strong
Rep. Mark A. Wheatley

Members Absent:
Sen. Evan J. Vickers

Staff Present:
Sean C. Faherty, Finance Officer
Ben Leishman, Finance Manager
Lorna Wells, Committee Secretary

Note: A copy of related materials and an audio recording of the meeting can be found at www.le.utah.gov.

Chair Grover called the meeting to order at 8:00 a.m.
1. 8:05 a.m. Scholarship Program Change Implementation and Communication
Spencer Jenkins, Chief of Staff, Utah System of Higher Education (USHE), gave an overview of USHE scholarships. He then specifically discussed the Regents' Scholarship and the Access Promise Scholarship programs.
2a-Scholarships and Access Advisors Presentation
Kim Ziebarth, Associate Commisioner, Utah System of Technical Colleges (UTECH) gave an overview of the Technical Education Scholarships.
2b-College Access Advising Program Testimonials - Handout
Kim Herrera, School Counseling Specialist, Utah State Board of Education discussed the K-12 partnership regarding financial aid programs available.
Spencer Jenkins summarized the importance of the College Access Advisors program.
Teresa Peterson, Counselor, Pine View High School, shared some of her experiences at the school with the College Access Advisor program.
Jonathan Weakley, College Access Advisor, Pine View High School described his role in the College Access Advisor program.
Chair Grover thanked the presenters for this vital information.
Sen. Hillyard mentioned the importance of awarding scholarships based on merit.
Rep. Miles asked if there is data that depicts the difference that this program makes. Teresa Peterson and Spencer Jenkins responded.
Sen. Mayne asked about students who want to attend technical colleges or other trades. Teresa Peterson and Spencer Jenkins responded.
2. Tuition Setting Process Presentation
USHE Tuition Setting Process
Richard Amon, Associate Commissioner, USHE discussed some of the changes that were made in March 2019 to the tuition setting process.
3a-USHE Tuition Presentation
Brad Mortensen, President, Weber State University (WSU) explained the tuition setting process at WSU.
Sen. Hillyard stated that the Legislature has forced tuition increases to meet salary expectations. Sen. Hillyard mentioned other costs associated with attending college.
David Woolstenhulme, Interim Commissioner, USHE, responded to Sen. Hillyard's comments.
Sen. Stevenson commented about the concept of affordability and the importance of the value of the education.
Sen. Millner mentioned that affordability is very individualized. Rich Amon responded and continued the presentation.
Sen. Stevenson asked if employees are being recruited by other industries. He also asked about student growth. Pres. Mortensen and Rich Amon responded.
Rep. Ballard complimented the USHE leadership on their vision about a streamlined process. She is hopeful that the Legislature is able to restructure the tax process to allow USHE better planning tools. David Woolstenhulme responded.
Sen. Hillyard mentioned that the national competition for faculty is very difficult for USHE institutions. Pres. Mortensen responded.
MOTION: Rep. McKell moved to approve the minutes of the February 10, 2020 and February 12, 2020 meetings. The motion passed with a vote of 13-0-3.
Yeas - 13Nays-0Abs-3
Rep. S. Duckworth
Sen. K. Grover
Rep. J. Hawkins
Sen. D. Henderson
Sen. L. Hillyard
Sen. K. Mayne
Rep. M. McKell
Rep. K. Miles
Sen. A. Millner
Rep. C. Pierucci
Rep. R. Shipp
Sen. J. Stevenson
Rep. M. Wheatley
Rep. M. Ballard
Rep. M. Strong
Sen. E. Vickers
UTech Tuition Setting Process
Jared Haines, Interim Commissioner, Utah System of Technical Colleges introduced the UTech process for setting tuition.
Tyler Brinkerhoff, Associate Commissioner, discussed the tuition setting process at UTech.
3b-UTech Tuition Presentation
Rep McKell asked about the average hours of work for a certificate. Jared Haines responded.
Sen. Hillyard asked about student fees. Jared Haines and Tyler Brinkerhoff responded.
Sen. Millner asked if the metric just depicts tuition paying students. She also asked if the scholarship program is helping with retention. Jared Haines and Tyler Brinkerhoff responded.
3. Space Utilization, Operations and Maintenance and SB 102 Discussion
David Woolstenhulme gave an overview about Space Utilization and Operations and Maintenance (O & M) about SB 102 (2019 Session).
4a-USHE Space Utilization Presentation
Rich Amon explained the USHE space utilization process.
Robin Burr, Chief Facilities Officer, University of Utah discussed the Rio Tinto Kennecott Mechanical Engineering Building.
Rio Tinto Kennecott Mechanical Engineering Building
David Cowley, VP Business and Finance, Utah State University discussed the O & M request at the Blanding Campus
Rep. McKell asked how O & M is calculated. Rich Amon responded.
Jeff West, V P of Finance and Administration, Salt Lake Community College, discussed the Student Support Building at the Westpoint Campus.
Sen. Hillyard commented about the increased staffing costs for new buildings.
Rep. Ballard expressed appreciation to institutions when they find their own funding for the actual building and only come to the Legislature asking for O & M funding. Rich Amon responded. He also mentioned that S.B. 102 from last year will significantly change the capital process.
4. Request for Appropriation - Mental Health Workforce Amendments
Rep. Steve Eliason explained this funding request.
13a-RFA - Mental Health Workforce Amendments
Rep. Pierucci spoke in favor of this funding request.
Sen. Mayne asked if this is on-going funding. Rep. Eliason resonded.
Sen. Stevenson asked if this is just a continuation of past processes. Rep. Eliason responded.
5. Request for Appropriation - Uinta Basin Ozone Research
Rep. Scott Chew explained this funding request with assistance of Seth Lyman, Bingham Center Director and Research Associate Professor.
8a-RFA - Uinta Basin Ozone Research
6. Request for Appropriation - Federalism Index Project
Rep. Keven Stratton explained this funding request with the assistance of Samuel Hill, Research Fellow, Federalism Index Project, Utah Valley University,
7a-RFA - Federalism Index Project
Rep. McKell asked for clarification about the funding request and the facilities fees. Samuel Hill responded and then other discussion took place about this project.
7. Request for Appropriation - The Human Xperience
Sen. Daniel Hemmert explained this funding request.
6a-RFA - The Human Xperience
Dinesh Patel, Center for Medical Innovation Advisory Board, University of Utah explained the importance of augmented and virtual reality in education.
Alexandra Hesse, Executive Director, Leonardo Museum, discussed the importance of this project.
Letter of Support for Human Xperience Exhibit from Dr. Mario Capecchi
Rep. Ballard has been very impressed with the innovation center and thanked Dr. Patel for his work.
8. Request for Appropriation - Higher Education Shared Services
Rep. McKell explained this funding request with the assistance of David Woolstenhulme.
9a-RFA - Higher Education Shared Services
9. Request for Appropriation - USU Eastern Aviation Mechanics Program
Sen. David Hinkins explained this funding request with the assistance of Casey Hopes, Carbon County Commissioner.
11a-RFA - USU Eastern Aviation Mechanics
Sen. Millner asked the request was brought to this subcommittee if the request is for a building. Sen. Hinkins responded.
10. Request for Appropriation - Intermountain Electronics Training Facility
Sen. Hinkins explained this funding request with the assistance of Phil Blackburn, CEO, Intermountain Electronics.
Intermountain Electronics Handout
Intermountain Electronics Brochure
12a-RFA - Intermountain Electronics Training Facility
Sen. Mayne asked about the availability of affordable housing in the area. Sen. Hinkins responded.
Larry Jensen, Carbon County Commissioner also responded.
11. Request for Appropriation - Comprehensive Public Sector Compensation Study
Sen. Luz Escamilla explained this funding request with the assistance of Norm Waitzman, Chair & Professor, Economics Department, U of U.
Public Sector Compensation Study
Catherine Ruetschlin, Economics Professor, University of Utah gave an overview of the research that is taking place with this study.
Sen. Mayne discussed the competition for employees with the private sector and spoke in favor of this funding request.
12. Request for Appropriation - Wildlife Management Research
Rep. Casey Snider explained this funding request with the assistance of Neil Abercrombie, Vice President for Federal and State Regulations, Utah State University.
Public Lands Legislative Initiative.
Sen. Millner asked for clarification about the request. Neal Abercombie responded.
Jeff Hartley, Energy Lobbyist, spoke in favor of this funding request.
13. Request for Appropriation - CRC/ Rocky Mtn. University/Community Rehab Clinic
Rep. Val Peterson explained this funding request with the assistance of Vic Deauvono, Chairman.
Community Rehabilitation Clinic
14. Request for Appropriation - State Parks Mobile Application
Rep. Brady Brammer explained this funding request.
Chair Grover asked how the application works with very limited cellular service in the area. Rep. Brammer responded.
15. Request for Appropriation - UVU Utah Lake Project
Rep. McKell explained this funding request with the assistance of Steve Anderson, Director - Community and Government Relations, Utah Valley University.
17a-RFA - UVU Utah Lake Project
Rep. Pierucci asked for clarification about the process involved. Rep. McKell responded.
Rep. Strong asked how other Utah Lake clean-up projects coordinate with one. Rep. McKell responded.
Chair Grover asked committee members to participate in the prioritization process.
Rep. McKell stated that he will be preparing a list of requests for each House member. He asked committee members to rank the list.
MOTION: Rep. Shipp moved to adjourn. The motion passed with a vote of 10-0-6.
Yeas - 10Nays-0Abs-6
Rep. S. Duckworth
Sen. K. Grover
Rep. J. Hawkins
Sen. L. Hillyard
Sen. K. Mayne
Rep. M. McKell
Sen. A. Millner
Rep. C. Pierucci
Rep. R. Shipp
Rep. M. Strong
Rep. M. Ballard
Sen. D. Henderson
Rep. K. Miles
Sen. J. Stevenson
Sen. E. Vickers
Rep. M. Wheatley
Chair Grover adjourned the meeting at 10:41 a.m.