Price of natural gas could cause increase in tuition
Campus utility costs for university go over budget by 25 percent

By Julie Ann Matonis
Staff Reporter

With campus utility costs 25 percent over budget because of elevated natural gas prices, TCU officials are monitoring the situation so students are not left out in the cold.

Carol Campbell, vice chancellor for finance and business, said the higher-than-anticipated utility costs could eventually impact students.

“If natural gas prices remain high, it will impact our decisions on tuition and room rates,” Campbell said. “It’s one of many factors.”

David Dunai Senior Photographer Natural gas meters may become the focus of attention on the TCU campus soon. Associate Director of the Physical Plant Dick Bryant said the $2,850,224 budgeted for campus utilities is not enough to cover the current expenses.

The budget for utilities on campus is $2,850,224, said Willett Stallworth, associate vice chancellor for plant management. Dick Bryan, associate director of the Physical Plant, said he does not know the full impact increased natural gas prices will have on campus.

“We’re paying two to three times what we were last year,” Bryan said. “It’s not in our budget to cover the unexpected rise.”

Edd Bivin, vice chancellor for administrative services, said there is no fund for utility overrun. Whatever extra funds are needed to cover utility costs come from the general operating budget.

Campbell said the overrun costs will be covered from two sources in the operating budget.

“It will get absorbed in our general budget,” Campbell said. “If the overrun is larger than our budget contingency, we are confident other areas will be under budget.”

When formulating the utility budget for next year, the university looks at last year’s consumption and what has been consumed to date this year, Bivin said.

Jon Walls, a spokesman for TXU Electric and Gas, said the simple economics of supply and demand are responsible for the increase in natural gas prices.

“Bills have gone up mostly because the demand has doubled,” Walls said. “When it’s colder, people use more natural gas to keep warm.”

Natural gas cannot just be delivered to customers overnight, which causes an increase in prices for the time being, Walls said.

According to the Energy Information Administration, there is a six- to 18-month lag time between the initial drilling for gas and when that supply reaches the market.

Bivin said students need to conserve energy and be aware of the impact rising resource costs have on heating, cooling and generating.

“We have not talked about imposing restrictions,” Bivin said. “How would you enforce them? I would hope that students adopt policies not just to curb costs but to conserve and curb consumption.”

Bryan said the university is doing what it can to conserve energy and cut costs by updating utility systems and replacing old boilers. Last summer the hot water heating system on east campus was replaced. The new system is more efficient and costs less, Bryan said.

Rebecca Whitesell, a Wiggins Hall resident assistant, said she thinks if residents saw a utility bill for the heating and electricity in their dorm room alone, they would be more inclined to conserve energy.

“We’re adults now, and I don’t think many of us have a good idea of what utilities cost,” Whitesell said. “Before we get out into the real world, we should see those bills.”

Julie Ann Matonis
j.a.matonis@student.tcu.edu