Summary of the Governor’s Recommended Budget for FY2024-FY2025

for NSHE Professional Employees

Nevada Faculty Alliance, 2/11/2023

The Governor’s budget is the starting point for legislative action. The Nevada Faculty Alliance is advocating for improvements in compensation and benefits for NSHE professionals and all state employees.

COMPENSATION

• Cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) of 8% on 7/1/2023 and 4% on 7/1/2024.
• “Retention bonuses” of $500 per quarter, 1/1/2023 through 6/30/2025.
• NSHE CFO Andrew Clinger confirmed that the COLAs and the retention bonuses include NSHE classified and professional employees (Board of Regents, 2/3/2023, audio at 1:04:01).
• Increased retirement plan contributions of 2% for the employee and 2% for the employer on 7/1/2023, offsetting the first-year COLA. For PERS members, pay is reduced by 2% with no change in retirement benefits. For employees on the NSHE retirement plan alternative, take-home pay is reduced by 2% but contributions into the 401a account are increased by 4% of salary.

BENEFITS

The Public Employee Benefits Program will largely have the same plan design as for FY2023, which represents a partial restoration of the drastic cuts to PEBP benefits during the pandemic. Major differences for the next biennium versus the pre-pandemic FY2020 plan include:

• Elimination of Long-Term Disability Insurance (leaving no safety net for faculty who have no Social Security Disability and no PERS early disability retirement).
• Reduction of the HSA contribution for the employee from $700 to $600 and elimination of the $200 per dependent HSA contribution (high-deductible plan).
• Reduction of basic life insurance by 40% from $25000 to $15000 for active employees.
• Increased co-pays, a new $100 deductible, and 20% co-insurance for some services for the HMO/EPO plans.
• An increase of the annual dental maximum from $1500 to $2000.
• Addition of a cancer concierge service (expected to produce cost savings).

The low-deductible plan added in FY2023 will be continued. Employee premium contributions are unknown until the March PEBP rate-setting meeting but are not expected to rise dramatically.

NSHE BUDGET

• Restores the 12% operating budget cuts from the last session due to the pandemic ($74M).
• Negative enrollment caseload reductions of $16M are offset by $14.2M in one-time funds to CSN, GBC, and TMCC for enrollment recovery and to UNR for Sierra Nevada University enrollment
• $9.2M enhancement to UNLV Medical School for class size increase.
• $20M budget enhancement for graduate assistant stipends at UNLV and UNR.
• $2M for added WSCH formula state support for summer school courses for teacher education.
• No major building capital projects are funded for NSHE. A total of $70M for deferred maintenance and infrastructure.
• For the seven formula-funded instructional budgets (CSN, GBC, NSC, TMCC, UNLV, UNR, & WNC), the state-appropriated funding resources will decline from pre-pandemic levels after considering inflation and increased retirement and benefits contributions.
• Further details are in the NSHE Budget Overview.

www.nevadafacultyalliance.org

Contact: Kent Ervin, kent.ervin@nevadafacultyalliance.org