The Pennsylvania General Assembly approved Penn State’s nonpreferred appropriations bill as part of the 2022-23 commonwealth budget. For the third consecutive year, the university’s general support appropriation will remain flat at $242.1 million.

Back in February, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf called for Penn State to receive a 5% funding increase, which would’ve been its first increase since the 2019-20 academic year (2% increase). In September of 2021, the university also requested that its general support appropriation be increased.

“We are disappointed that the General Assembly chose not to increase Penn State’s general support appropriation, as the University had requested and Gov. Wolf had proposed,” Zack Moore, Penn State vice president for Government and Community Relations, said. “Pennsylvania students and their families are the direct beneficiaries of this funding, saving them thousands of dollars each on the total cost of a degree.”

“After freezes to the University’s funding each of the last two years, and in the midst of nearly unprecedented inflation and state budget surpluses, Penn State and its students — particularly lower- and middle-income students — count on state support to help meet rising costs and to help mitigate impacts on tuition,” he continued.

However, other aspects of the budget will benefit the university during the 2022-23 academic year. As Wolf requested, there’s a 5% funding increase for Penn State Agricultural Research, as well as an additional $2.35 million allocated to Invent Penn State, the university’s entrepreneurship program.

Wolf’s proposal of a $1.3 million funding increase toward the Pennsylvania College of Technology, an affiliate of the university, wasn’t approved, as the budget will remain level at $26.7 million for the third straight year.

“The funding we receive from the commonwealth plays a critical role in helping to keep a world-class Penn State education affordable for Pennsylvania students and families,” President Neeli Bendapudi said. “This year there are positive elements like increased funding for the College of Agricultural Sciences that will benefit the vital research and extension work that impacts the state’s agriculture industry and rural communities, as well as new support for Invent Penn State that will enhance the work Penn State is already doing to spark economic development, revitalization and entrepreneurial activity all across Pennsylvania.”

“However, it is important to emphasize a broader context,” Bendapudi continued. “Inflationary pressures, revenue losses from the pandemic, demographic shifts and other factors driving cost, coupled with successive years of flat funding, pose significant challenges for the University and will require us to look deeply at our budget and spending in the coming year.”

Now that state funding is settled, Penn State’s operating budget schedule, as well as its tuition and fees schedule, for the 2022-23 fiscal year will be finalized and brought to the Board of Trustees. Last year, the board voted to raise tuition by about 2.5% for in-state students and 2.75% for out-of-state students.