At the request of the Iowa Board of Regents, the university has submitted two alternative budget proposals for state funding that could potentially lead to the elimination of several academic departments on campus.

Both proposals call for no increases in state funding for ISU, and according to school officials, the most drastic of the two scenarios calls for the university to absorb more than $11 million in cost increases for the 1997 fiscal year. The money would be absorbed through internal reallocations.

Officials said the reallocated funds would cause the elimination and reduction of six departments.

The second scenario calls for the university to absorb nearly $2 million in non-salary cost increases for the 1997 budget.

In this scenario no academic departments would not be cut. However, it would force the loss of personnel throughout the university.

Rabindra Mukerjea, assistant to the president for budget planning and analysis, said the impact of both of the proposals could prove to be damaging to ISU.

“The two scenarios certainly have an impact on the university,” he said. “It will have a negative impact.”

School officials had originally submitted a budget proposal to the Regents in July asking for a 2.8 percent increase in state funds, but Board President Marvin Pomerantz asked the university to come up with two alternate scenarios with no funding increases.

The Board will choose one of the three budget scenarios at the Regents’ meeting Wednesday in Iowa City and will then recommend the budget to Gov. Terry Branstad, said John Anderson, associate director of university relations.

Anderson said it is hopeful that the Board of Regents will pick the budget with a 2.8 percent increase for the Fiscal Year 1997.