Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin still has a bill on his desk that will give some additional authority to the boards of governors at WVU and Marshall but not as much as the two universities originally wanted.
The bill, which passed on the final night of the legislative session more than two weeks ago, would allow the BOGs to spend more money without the approval of the state Higher Education Policy Commission. But the governor says the HEPC still should provide oversight.
“We have given autonomy to a great extent to WVU and Marshall, they are the two largest universities, but I think the policy commission still has a role to play,” Tomblin said. “If we’re going to spend taxpayer dollars or even private sources in partnership with our institutions, that needs to come before the policy commission.”
HEPC Chairman Dave Hendrickson spoke out against the original bill maintaining the policy commission plays a key role in higher education and should not have its authority continually stripped away. It seems to have an ally in the governor.
“Oversight is good so that people know where their money is being spent,” Tomblin said.