A Republican-crafted state budget has been a sore point for New Hampshire's Democratic Gov. John Lynch, who opposes the steep cuts to higher education in the bill.
But in order to prevent the state from shutting down on July 1, Lynch announced last week that he will allow the budget to become law without his signature.
The budget slashes funding to the state's public universities nearly in half, from $100 million last year to $51.2 million in fiscal 2012.
As a result, the university system is cutting 200 jobs and increasing tuition for in-state students by nearly 10%. Tuition will rise 8.7% at the University of New Hampshire and 9.7% at Plymouth State University and Keene State College.
"This will be the most challenging year in the history of the University System in light of the State's fiscal situation and resulting cuts in funding for public higher education," Ed Dupont, chairman of the University System of New Hampshire Board of Trustees said in a statement.
