U of M Board of Regents approves fiscal year 2022 operating budget

Today the University of Minnesota Board of Regents approved U of M President Joan Gabel’s recommended operating budget for fiscal year 2022, which balances strategic investments with significant revenue losses from the pandemic.

“This budget is the culmination of months of discussion between the President and Board, including public input earlier this month. In any year, the University’s budget is complex based on the array of teaching, discovery and engagement across the University system. But this budget also layers on the significant challenges of a multi-year global pandemic,” said Board Chair Ken Powell. “As a Board, we weighed those challenges and examined opportunities to advance the University’s mission and position our students for success. We’re tremendously grateful to everyone who contributed to this work, including members of the University community who shared their feedback with us. This budget sets the University on a strong path in the year ahead.”

The budget—which runs July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2022—estimates approximately $4 billion in revenues, which is balanced against a comparable total for expenditures. Within each of those totals is a collection of incremental shifts to address the atypical challenges presented by this year’s budget, in addition to the more routine considerations necessary to build a balanced budget for one of America’s leading research universities.

Notable incremental shifts in revenue and expenses for the FY22 operating budget include:

• Unit-level budget reallocations to create savings that will comprise much of the University’s incremental resource growth.
• Program enhancements and compliance and operational updates representing the majority of increased expenses, largely focused on addressing commitments in the University’s systemwide strategic plan, MPact 2025.
• An increased state appropriation, which was recently approved by the Minnesota Legislature and signed by Governor Tim Walz.
• Adjustments to general tuition rates, including a 1.5 percent increase for undergraduates systemwide that continues the University’s commitment for any tuition adjustments to remain below the rate of inflation.
• A 1.5 percent increase in employee compensation systemwide, following a general salary freeze for most employees in last year’s annual budget.

The Board reviewed the President’s Recommended FY 2022 Annual Operating Budget as part of its Finance & Operations Committee meeting in early June. Regents also considered feedback from a public forum held on June 11, as well as more than 50 public comments provided in writing.

TCF Bank Stadium officially renamed Huntington Bank Stadium
The Board also approved changing the name of TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis to Huntington Bank Stadium, voting in support of both the name change and a new logo. Updates to related agreements were also approved to reflect the new entity’s name, as well as ensuring continued legal compliance and value to the University community.

Changes to the stadium name and logo, which were anticipated as a possibility in the original naming rights agreement between the University and TCF Bank, come after TCF Bank was acquired by Huntington Bank earlier this year.

The Board of Regents is scheduled to meet next on July 7-9, 2021. Visit regents.umn.edu for more information.