DeKALB- Proposed legislation in Illinois aims to change distribution of funding in higher education with NIU potentially receiving 65% more in state appropriations.

The bill, titled the Adequate and Equitable University Act would provide universities with increased state funding.

In August 2021, the state assembly created the Illinois Commission on Equitable Public University Funding Act. The purpose was to systematize higher education funding to address issues of social mobility.

NIU professor of sociology Simón Weffer sits on the commission.

According to Weffer, Illinois has never used a formula to set university funding with appropriations based on the previous year’s funds. If the state’s budget for higher education increases 3%, NIU receives 3% more from the state. Funding for universities does not change on an individual basis to match their differing circumstances and environments.

“By starting with an emphasis on equity, we started to break down ‘OK what do different student populations need?’ and we found that, of course, campuses differ on what they need and how much money they need because of the students that go there,” Weffer said.

State spending on higher education fell 46% between 2000 and 2023. 

Currently, NIU is 56% adequately funded, meaning that according to the state of Illinois, it only receives 56% of the funds required for it to operate adequately. No Illinois public university is adequately funded.

Given this funding gap, NIU has been unable to keep buildings and other infrastructure in good condition, needing to defer maintenance rather than performing preventative maintenance. 

According to the fiscal year 2026 Illinois state budget, public higher education institutions have over $8.6 billion in deferred maintenance. NIU alone is estimated to have $580 million in deferred maintenance costs.

“Capital and deferred maintenance is not part of what goes into the funding formula, and that’s unfortunate,” Weffer said.

Similarly, room and board is not included in these calculations. For NIU, the goal would be to have more people living in DeKalb, allowing those students to spend time studying, resting or socializing rather than driving.

“You’re losing time to study; you’re losing time for a part time job. You’re losing time to sleep; you’re losing time to eat,” Weffer said. “You’re losing time to decompress and do all the important mental health things that you need to be a successful student.” 

However, even with all the caveats, NIU would benefit greatly from the implementation of the funding formula, receiving $67 million more in state appropriations.

“I think the bottom line really is we came up with a better model that’s different than everyone else’s in terms of states because we’re concerned with issues of equity,” Weffer concluded.