US: Californian universities in budget hell

California's universities are reeling from unprecedented budget cuts that have been triggered by the state's financial crisis, writes Rex Dalton for Nature. The 10-campus University of California expects to see a cut of US$800 million from the $3.2 billion in state funds it was due to receive over the next year. And with 23 campuses that provide mainly undergraduate degrees, the California state university system anticipates that at least $580 million will be sliced from its $2.7-billion state award.

The full weight of the budgetary axe began taking its toll after voters in last mont''s state-wide election rejected a series of proposals designed to ease California's budget deficit of more than $24 billion. California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and the state legislature are now making a series of adjustments to the state's budget. In an effort to control academic spending, some state legislators have proposed stripping the University of California of its constitutional autonomy, placing it directly under the control of elected legislators - a move that university officials say they will fight to the end.
Full report on the Nature site