Age-old question returns: Should college athletics help pay for other university expenses?

With another possible round of state budget cuts on the horizon, some state lawmakers are again questioning whether the big money raised by Division I athletic programs should help offset the millions in cuts that the universities already have seen this year.

Rep. Tony Bisignano, D-Des Moines, said he got to thinking about whether Hawkeyes should start sharing the wealth after athletic director Gary Barta rattled off examples of the University of Iowa's annual athletic fundraising power and conference revenue.

Barta recently pointed out that the UI Department of Athletics brought in about $48 million in donor pledges over the past year. And the Hawkeyes also stand to get another $50 million annually in TV and conference payouts through a new contract for members of the Big Ten Conference.

Those eight-figure dollar amounts, Bisignano said, would go a long way toward helping offset the $9.2 million mid-year cut UI experienced during 2016-17 and the additional $6.2 million cut it saw for the current fiscal year.

"I understand when they say that they are separate entities — and I understand the reasons for the division and that athletics is self-supporting — but it's all part of the identity of the university,” Bisignano said. "I understand that those are different issues, but they aren't different to the public."

ISU's revenue from the Big 12 conference likewise could go a long way toward helping with the $9 million the Ames-based university saw in mid-year cuts in 2016-17 and additional $2.5 million cut for this year. 

The state senator said he is having a hard time explaining to his constituents in Des Moines how UI is facing state cuts but still can afford $90 million in renovations to Kinnick Stadium, as well as a $6.5 million settlement in two high-profile wrongful termination lawsuits.

“Money is money," he said.

With state revenues continuing to come in lower than projected, Bisignano said he will be actively talking with his legislative colleagues about how to push the universities' athletic programs beyond being merely being “self-sustaining.”

“We need to figure out how to have that discussion,” he said. “The opportunity may come sooner than later if we go back into special session and talk about reducing our expenses to make up for the shortfall we have this year.”

'Everything on the table'

The opportunity for such a discussion could start as soon as Thursday, when the Iowa Board of Regents holds a Tuition Task Force meeting in the Des Moines area. The regents, who oversee Iowa’s public universities and specialty schools, created the task force to explore the factors that go into setting tuition at the public universities.

The chairman of the task force said he is open to proposals about using athletic funding for general university operations at UI and ISU.

“I’ve said everything is on the table,” Regent Larry McKibben said. “The decisions about the use of athletic funding have been under the direction of the presidents of the universities. I’m certain those discussions are going on at the university level.”

Bisignano’s Democratic colleagues in the Senate are split in reaction to his proposal.

“We need to be looking at everything, and there is precedent for athletic departments contributing to a university’s general fund,” said Sen. Bob Dvorsky, D-Coralville, whose district includes parts of UI.

Sen. Jeff Danielson, D-Cedar Falls, described the idea as “non-sustainable” and “a gimmick.”

“It also doesn’t allow for transparency if they are going to follow the individual universities and programs and track the cost centers,” said Danielson, whose district includes the University of Northern Iowa.

Senate Republicans, who hold a majority in both legislative house, are less certain that a special session is inevitable this fall.

“It's a question mark at this point,” said Sen. Tim Kraayenbrink, co-chair of the joint Education Appropriations Subcommittee. “The governor continues to have the ability to pull a certain amount from the rainy day fund. If it gets above that amount, then we’ll see.”

Sharing the wealth

UI President Bruce Harreld already has shown himself to be open to the idea of asking the athletic department to find new ways to help. UI athletics has been "self-sustaining" — meaning that it hasn't used money from the university's general fund — for the past decade.

Harreld challenged Barta last year to come up with ways that the department could financially contribute to the university’s mission beyond the direct and indirect costs of educating student-athletes. UI officials have not provided details about the results of Harreld’s challenge.

“We are getting close to having that finalized and hope to have an announcement before the start of the semester,” Jeneane Beck, a UI spokeswoman, said via email last week.

UI athletics recently reported a roughly $3 million deficit for the second year in a row. Barta said the department will dip into its reserve funds to cover the shortfall.

Iowa isn't the only university exploring the financial intersection of athletics and academics. But there are widespread concerns that diverting funds will undercut the competitiveness of athletic programs, and few colleges actually see dollars flowing from sports to the classroom.

A 2016 report by The Chronicle of Higher Education found that 40 athletics departments at U.S. universities reported giving money to academics but in reality only 10 of those provided more funding than they received in subsidies. Four of those 10 were members of the Big Ten.

ISU administrators have made no such challenge to their athletics department. 

"There are no plans to transfer athletics revenue to the general fund of the university to make up for budget cuts the university sustained," John McCarroll, a spokesman for ISU, said via email last week. "The Iowa State Athletics Department is a self-supporting unit."

During the 2016-17 academic year, the university's athletics department provided about $24.7 million "in direct and indirect support to other ISU departments and entities," McCarroll said. That total includes $15.3 million for tuition, room and board; $3.6 million for facilities and maintenance; $2.9 million for university services; and nearly $3 million for other services.

'Tuition situation for Iowa kids'

In response to the instability of state funding levels, the regents have asked UI, ISU and the University of Northern Iowa to come up with a five-year tuition strategy. Those plans will be presented to the task force next month in meetings on the campuses.

It’s unclear whether redirected athletic funding would be included in any of those strategies, but Bisignano said he would like to see it used at least for keeping resident undergraduate tuition down to affordable levels.

UNI, however, is not included in Bisignano's call for sharing the academic wealth.

The Missouri Valley Conference provides UNI with a small fraction of the revenue that the Big Ten gives UI and the Big 12 gives ISU. As a result, UNI officials supplement the athletic department’s budget with about $4 million annually from the university’s general fund.

There have been legislative proposals in recent years to require UI and ISU to cover UNI’s athletic shortfall, using similar arguments about use of the funds coming in from big-money conferences. But those bills have never made it out of committee.

Bisignano, who is ranking member of the Senate State Government Committee, said he realizes it may take a few sessions for his idea to gain enough support to move through the legislative process. But he is looking to begin the discussion sooner rather than later.

“I just want to see the fiscal picture of all the pockets that they have, what they have available and what the tuition situation is for Iowa kids,” he said.

Reach Jeff Charis-Carlson at jcharisc@press-citizen.com or 319-887-5435. Follow him on Twitter: @JeffCharis.

Tuition Task Force

The Iowa Board of Regents have scheduled the following public sessions for its Tuition Task Force:

• 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., July 27, in the Pappajohn Education Center, 1200 Grand Ave., Des Moines.
• 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., Aug. 7 in the Slife Ballroom on the UNI campus in Cedar Falls.
• 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Aug. 9 in Room 240 of the Scheman Building on the ISU campus in Ames.
• 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Aug 14 in Kollros Auditorium of the Biology Building East on the UI campus in Iowa City.

For information, visit www.iowaregents.edu.