UMaine System faces $16M operating loss for budget year that ended in June

The University of Maine System is facing a $16 million operating loss for the budget year that just ended because of $11 million in new retirement and severance costs.

The seven-campus system also saw a $3.5 million loss in one of its investment funds.

The Portland Press Herald (http://bit.ly/1Sz4WV8 ) reports that the $519 million budget year that ended in June already included using $11.4 million in emergency funds and cutting 157 positions.

Rebecca Wyke, vice chancellor for finance and administration, says system officials didn't know how many employees would retire and take advantage of special retirement incentives until the end of the school year.

Wyke says the system will balance the budget by drawing from a budget stabilization fund, some campus reserves and drawing down the system's insurance benefit pool.

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Information from: Portland Press Herald, http://www.pressherald.com