The Senate Education Committee has voted unanimously in favor of HB 544, the bill to create a higher education stabilization fund, into which the state would deposit money in good times to help out state colleges and universities during downturns. There's not much money to put in such a fund now, but the idea is to plan for future downturns. Jason Kreizenbeck, Gov. Butch Otter's chief of staff, told the lawmakers the governor is co-sponsoring the bill, and hopes the fund can help higher education just as the public education stabilization fund, known around the Statehouse as PESF, helped public schools avoid holdbacks in recent years. "We think ... it would be great to have a tool like that available to higher education," Kreizenbeck told the committee. Senate Assistant Majority Leader Joe Stegner, R-Lewiston, also touted the bill to the panel. It's already passed the House, and moves now to the full Senate.

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