...State Appropriation Levels Improved in 2014: Public universities showed flat to improved levels of appropriations in fiscal 2014, following several years of decline. State appropriations remained an important revenue source for the sector and contributed to revenue diversity. However, long term, the proportion of state operating appropriations relative to operating revenues continues to decline. Higher education appropriations are often among the first cuts a state makes when faced with a challenging budgetary environment. Tuition and Fee Increases Tempered: As appropriations stabilized in fiscal 2014, tuition and student fee revenue continued to increase for most institutions, but at a slower pace than in recent years. Tuition and fee revenues are an increasingly larger component of total operating revenues, offsetting several years of declining state funding. A greater number of institutions crossed the threshold, whereby student revenue is the largest revenue source, versus state operating...
