In an effort to dissuade the Legislature against cutting higher education funding, University President Bob Bruininks and Chief Financial Officer Richard Pfutzenreuter met with the House higher education finance committee Thursday, urging legislators to make higher education a priority for the state. Last week, Governor Tim Pawlenty proposed cutting $46 million from higher education âÄî $36 million from the University and $10 million from the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system âÄî in his budget plan to fix the $1.2 billion state budget deficit. Members of the House and Senate are now in the process of drawing up their own budget. âÄúThese cuts are very deep and theyâÄôre very real,âÄù Bruininks told the bipartisan committee of lawmakers. A decision to cut state funding for higher education would be a âÄúdeliberate decision to compromise our future,âÄù he said. Bruininks made his case that state funding is critical to the success of the University. He stressed the importance of having an educated workforce, and said the success of the University is directly tied to that of the stateâÄôs business climate. âÄúWeâÄôve got to fight to keep our edge,âÄù Bruininks said. âÄúI donâÄôt want to be known as the generation that pulled the ladder of opportunity up behind us,âÄù Bruininks said. Ryan Kennedy, Minnesota Student Association legislative certificate program, said he agreed with BruininksâÄô appraisal of the UniversityâÄôs dire financial situation. âÄúThereâÄôs not an easy fix to this, but certainly part of the solution does include getting as much support as possible from the state,âÄù Kennedy said. Rep. Tom Rukavina, DFL-Virginia, who chairs the higher education committee, said he wonâÄôt propose a budget plan made of all cuts to the University. âÄúYou make the cuts. IâÄôm done cutting,âÄù Rukavina told the Republicans on the committee. âÄúYou cut what you want to cut.âÄù Rukavina said he plans to find money to replace the governorâÄôs cuts through revenue-generating programs, including a possible sales tax on personal electronics and an income tax surcharge. He estimated he could find enough money to fill the hole from cuts to higher education. Higher education makes up about 9 percent of the state budget, with the University set to receive $627 million from the state in 2011. If the governorâÄôs recommended cuts go through, University funding from the state would revert back to its 2006 levels. Rep. Keith Downey, R-Edina, said the University is lucky to be getting funding at its 2006 levels and asked University officials why tuition couldnâÄôt be raised even more to help cushion the state cuts. Rep. Tim Mahoney, DFL-St. Paul, answered Downey by saying the state has abandoned its two-thirds funding obligation commitment to the University, where the state pays for two-thirds of the UniversityâÄôs operating budget. âÄúItâÄôs totally wrong,âÄù he said, calling the cuts âÄúan abomination of what this state has always stood for.âÄù Bruininks said the University does the best it can to keep cuts from hitting students. âÄúWhen it comes to budget reductions, we try to do everything possible to shield students,âÄù Bruininks said. âÄúBut you canâÄôt make reductions of this size without touching education.âÄù The University is required to submit a detailed budget report to the Legislature outlining its plans for applying possible cuts by March 15.