NIU officials are warning unregistered students they will not be able to get a full course load this fall due to a million-dollar cut in state education funds.

This and other program constraints are in response to a last-minute state budget cut in funds supposedly set up last year for “one-year” projects.

NIU President John La Tourette said because of a 1.3 percent cut in state funding voted on last week, NIU will have to cut some courses. He is sending letters to admitted, but unregistered, students stating they probably will not be able to get a full 12 hours this fall.

The letters also advise that students should consider alternate education plans in the fall, he said.

La Tourette said he understood the difficulties in the budget crisis but thought that the “11th-hour” decision on the budget put NIU’s offerings for incoming students in a difficult spot.

However, Rep. Brad Burzynski (R-Sycamore) said the money cut from the budget is from a one-year fund that was earmarked for special projects and would not directly affect classes. The fund was a $17 million extra expenditure the universities received last year, he said.

Board of Regents Chancellor Roderick Groves said the one year fund money was appropriated last year for one-year purposes, or expenditures that wouldn’t have been needed the following year.

Groves said the governor had pledged to get all money appropriated to higher education last year approved again for this year’s budget. This included the one year fund, he said.

However, Ken Beasley, assistant to La Tourette, said legislators had been debating all session long whether or not those funds were to be considered part of the total package.

“We assumed the $17 million was included, but we never really knew,” Beasley said.

Burzynski said the fund was dropped from the budget July 17.

Combined with Gov. Jim Edgar’s $5 million increase for higher education it works out to a $12 million loss overall for state universities, Burzynski said.

However, “when you look at the overall budget cuts of $1.5 billion, the amount cut from higher education seems to be minimal from that perspective,” he said.

Beasley also said the education budget picture could look a lot worse, citing the fact that the surcharge was passed and the budget cuts were relatively mild compared to other state-financed programs.

“In terms of support needed, we do not feel (the appropriations) are adequate. In terms of state fiscal problems we understand the situation and want to be cooperative,” Beasley said.