As a young girl, I grew up in the shadow of the University of Houston just a few miles from campus. I, like many Houstonians, know that UH is the beating heart of the academic community in Houston. I could not be more proud of the tremendous success and achievements we have been able to reach under the leadership of Chancellor Khator.
However, I still find myself unsatisfied. In fact, I will never be satisfied until UH gets the respect and support we deserve from the State of Texas in the form of access to the Permanent University Fund or âPUF Fundâ. The University of Texas System and Texas A&M System have benefited for years from this fund that excludes UH and every other university system in Texas. This inequity is why I filed HJR 110 that will create a second PUF Fund known as, PUF II, which will benefit the University of Houston System. This additional funding source will be critical to the development and growth of our system as we continue to strive for excellence.
I am calling on all UH Cougars to call, write and tweet at your State Representative and Senator to support HJR 110. Letâs continue the H-Town Takeover in Austin this legislative session!
Essentially, it freezes the size of the main PUF as of August 2017. Every two years, beginning in 2019, the proposal would transfer 99% of the growth of the main PUF since Aug 2017 into the PUF 2.
The funds cannot be used for student housing or intercollegiate athletics.
In addition, a PUF 3 is contemplated for other state schools if and when PUF 2 ever gets as large as the main PUF.
âYouâre going to destroy two great AAU universities and bring them down to make everybody equal,â Texas A&M Chancellor John Sharp said, referring to the association.
âDo not jeopardize the excellence of UT Austin and Texas A&M,â UT Board Chairman Paul Foster said.
Khator made it a point to mention that by saying that she had them admit that a Fund was needed in order to have more AAU schools in the state and Iâm sure these quotes will be turned around on in future legislative sessions. Thatâs probably the end goal; to establish a separate fund for the other school systems where the UT/A&M system schools have no access (unlike NRUF or other similar state funds).
The PUF, established in the Texas Constitution in 1876, is a $17 billion fund that portions money to the Available University Fund based off of oil and gas leases, said Jason Smith, the vice chancellor of Government Affairs at UH.
Only UT and Texas A&M can access this fund for âexcellence,â he said, which is a broad term the universities can use to fund whatever they see as necessary, including a distinguished professorâs salary, construction of labs and scholarships for out-of-state students.
âAll of the universities within the UT System have access to PUF, but those other universities that do have access can only use it to build buildings,â Smith said. âThey canât use it for âexcellence.â So the real advantage is the fact that (UT and Texas A&M) can use this money for excellence, and itâs basically a slush fund for whatever they determine they need for excellence at their university.â
The funds give UT and Texas A&M a major financial advantage over UH, Smith said. According to statistics provided by Smith, the University of Texas and Texas A&M received $242.85 million and $132.07 million from the AUF for âexcellence,â respectively, during the 2016 fiscal year.
âWe have an institutionalized system of haves and have-nots in higher education right now, and we have to change that dynamic,â Smith said.
