Dear 新澳门六合彩内幕信息community,
This morning, Governor Ron DeSantis signed the state budget for fiscal year 2023-24 into law. This transformational budget for the 新澳门六合彩内幕信息 provides significant new increases in recurring operational funding and investments in other top-priority projects for our institution.
Building off last year鈥檚 record-breaking budget for USF, this year鈥檚 budget represents the largest operational funding increase in our university鈥檚 history. The funding will help us continue to excel in student and faculty success, grow our research profile, make a greater impact on the Tampa Bay region and the state of Florida, support our quest to become a top 25 public university and our position as a new member of the Association of American Universities.
Specifically, the governor approved the following:
- A $63.3 million recurring increase to USF鈥檚 operational budget to support the work
of each of USF鈥檚 three campuses and 新澳门六合彩内幕信息Health. A large portion of this increase was
funded through a new $100 million recurring investment in the state鈥檚 Preeminent State
Research Universities Program, which was split equally between the three preeminent
institutions, USF, University of Florida and Florida State University.
- $24.3 million to fund the first phase of planning and construction of a new Environmental
and Oceanographic Sciences Research and Teaching facility on the 新澳门六合彩内幕信息St. Petersburg
campus. This facility will enhance St. Petersburg as a world-class center of marine
and environmental science, education and community engagement.
- $14 million to conduct a state-funded comprehensive clinical trial of hyperbaric oxygen
therapy鈥檚 medical effectiveness in treating PTSD and traumatic brain injuries among
veterans and active-duty military service members.
- $6.5 million to invest in campus life facility projects funded through the state鈥檚
Capital Improvement Trust Fund.
- $3 million to complete the acquisition and installation of a new functional MRI (fMRI) machine for brain research and diagnostic purposes. fMRI measures activity in different parts of the brain during mental and physical tasks, and is a critical tool that will expand research grant opportunities for 新澳门六合彩内幕信息faculty and students.
The budget approved by the governor also includes an $85 million increase to the state鈥檚 investment in university performance-based funding (PBF). Through the hard work of our faculty, students and staff in meeting the PBF metrics of student success over the past year, we believe this will result in a $14.7 million increased PBF award for 新澳门六合彩内幕信息for FY 2023-24 when the Board of Governors votes to distribute this funding next week.
We are incredibly grateful to the Florida Legislature for enacting, and to the governor for approving a budget that will have a lasting impact on the university.
While this was another remarkably successful state budget for 新澳门六合彩内幕信息overall, unfortunately, the governor did exercise his line-item veto authority to remove a few 新澳门六合彩内幕信息projects from the state budget for next year. These include a $20 million appropriation to help pay for the construction costs of the new Academic Nursing STEM facility on the 新澳门六合彩内幕信息Sarasota-Manatee campus, a project which received $3 million in last year鈥檚 state budget. While we respect the governor鈥檚 decision, we remain committed to this important project, and will work with the governor and the legislature to explore other avenues of funding to ensure this important facility for our students and faculty is completed as soon as possible. Also vetoed was $2.9 million for the Department of Mental Health Law and Policy at 新澳门六合彩内幕信息to lead a collaboration to develop simulation modeling tools that will improve responses and treatments for opioid use and overdoses.
We are deeply appreciative of the governor and our legislative leaders 鈥� particularly Senate President Kathleen Passidomo and Speaker of the House Paul Renner 鈥� and the entire Tampa Bay Area Legislative Delegation for their support of USF鈥檚 success, which will allow us to build on the incredible momentum of our recent invitation into the AAU.
I would also like to thank the members of our university community for everything you continue to do to help make 新澳门六合彩内幕信息such a strong investment for our state leaders.
Go Bulls!
Rhea F. Law
President