Funding

How are the Statewides funded?

The three statewide public service programs are each mandated by separate, long-standing federal legislation. The Oregon legislature provides funding for the Statewides in three distinct line items in the state budget. State appropriations enable the Statewides to receive and compete for federal, local, and external sources that fund research, innovation, and other activities across the state.

Summer 2020 Special Session

The Ways & Means Co-Chairs have proposed a 5% cut in the current biennium to these critical programs that have statewide impact and significance. Compounded to a single fiscal year, this equates to a 10% cut in FY21. These reductions equate:

• Extension Service - $2.8M
• Agricultural Experiment Stations - $3.8M
• Forest Research Lab - $571K

The value in each of these programs resides in their dedicated faculty and staff. Unfortunately, that is also where much of these cuts would need to be managed. Compensation costs make up 78% of OSU’s education and operation budgets. As past budget reductions have proven, it takes years to recover from personnel losses resulting in an inability to be innovative and nimble in addressing emerging issues, like adapting to a post-COVID world.

There is recognition that the Legislature will need to make tough budget decisions in a special session. The Statewides are facing significant reductions from their other revenue sources and already implementing difficult cost-saving measures. Collectively, these cuts impact the vitality of all of Oregon’s natural resources and communities – both urban and rural.

The 19-21 appropriations for the Statewides included a “catch-up” amount in recognition that state appropriations had not been keeping up with current service levels. There were also targeted investments to increase capacity in areas important to the state – wildfire resilience and recovery, water quality and quantity, and organic agriculture. The proposed reductions would present significant setbacks in these vital programs and translate into additional reductions in personnel across the state.

2019-21 funding

The Oregon legislature approved a $19.2 million funding increase (15.4%) for the Statewides for the 2019-21 biennium. This increase includes $14.4 million to cover continued service level costs and address past budget shortfalls and $5.2 million for new initiatives, including $2 million to the OSU Extension Service for fire resilience and recovery and a total of nearly $2.7 million to the Agricultural Experiment Station and Extension for water quality and quantity programs. The legislature also approved $375,000 for organic agriculture Extension, and one-time funding of $125,000 for a continuing Agriculture Experiment Station berry research position.