{"id":227480,"date":"2025-12-23T08:22:44","date_gmt":"2025-12-23T18:22:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=227480"},"modified":"2026-04-17T14:56:44","modified_gmt":"2026-04-18T00:56:44","slug":"legislative-budget-request-whats-next","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/23\/legislative-budget-request-whats-next\/","title":{"rendered":"UH<\/abbr>‘s legislative budget request: What to know, and what\u2019s next"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 3<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>

\"Hawaii<\/p>\n

Aloha UH<\/abbr> ʻohana,<\/p>\n

\"Salaveria
Luis Salaveria<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

My name is Luis P. Salaveria, and I am honored to serve as the new Vice President for Budget and Finance and Chief Financial Officer for the University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>. I step into this role following Kalbert Young, who after a decade of dedicated service to UH<\/abbr> will be leaving at the end of the year.<\/p>\n

Kalbert built a strong financial foundation, and I am honored for the trust placed in me to continue to strengthen our campuses and our communities. One practice he began, and one I plan to continue, is keeping the UH<\/abbr> community up to date on our annual budget request to the State Legislature, starting with a summary of this year\u2019s request approved by the Board of Regents on November 20<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Biennial budget system<\/h2>\n

Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> operates on a biennial budget system, meaning the state budget is adopted every two years. We are now in the second year of the current biennium, so UH<\/abbr>\u2019s request this session is a supplemental budget, essentially a request for funding adjustments or additions to the budget approved during the last legislative session. There are two types of budget requests: operating and capital improvement, the latter supporting major and minor construction projects.<\/p>\n

The UH<\/abbr> Board of Regents\u2019 approved supplemental operating and capital budget requests<\/a> have been submitted to Gov. Green and the State Legislature. On December 22, the Governor released the executive branch\u2019s supplemental budget<\/a> for all state departments, including UH<\/abbr>. State lawmakers will begin considering these requests on January 21 when the 2026 Legislative Session opens.<\/p>\n

Supplemental Operating Budget Request<\/h2>\n

Our supplemental operating budget request totals $18.8 million and focuses on two priority areas: healthcare workforce initiatives and UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa athletics. These proposals were chosen because they impact not just the university, but also the state\u2019s economy and quality of life for residents. UH<\/abbr> plans to use internal operating funds to support other strategic investments and needs in the next fiscal year.<\/p>\n

Healthcare workforce initiatives<\/strong><\/p>\n

We are requesting $3.7 million and 18.5 full-time positions to help address critical healthcare workforce shortages across Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>. This funding would support coordinated, systemwide health science and healthcare workforce initiatives spanning multiple campuses and units, including:<\/p>\n