"We are seeing limited new initiatives and higher tuition."

Last week, Penn State President Graham Spanier said he has no idea when the university is going to receive the funds.

"This is not a good situation for Penn State and we have not seen very much movement in Harrisburg," he said.

Spanier said the university either has to borrow money or use reserves.

"Either case it's costing us money," he said.

"The university does not get the interest it normally would from the money [in reserves] if we take it out."

Penn State spokesman Bill Mahon said there are two things the university relies on for funding: tuition and state appropriations.

Currently Penn State is relying completely on tuition to fund the university, he said.

"We are doing our best to operate the university," he said. "But things are becoming a little more difficult each week."

The general funds budget shows about 69 percent of the university's resources comes from tuition and fees, 25 percent comes from state appropriations and 6 percent from other areas, Erickson said.

This past academic year, Penn State's tuition went up 9.8 percent, which Erickson said compares favorably with other universities. Iowa State University, the University of Wisconsin, the University of Minnesota and Michigan State University have seen much larger tuition increases, he said.

Erickson listed the university's budget priorities, which include increased benefit costs, maintaining and repairing facilities, competitive salaries and high-quality academic programs.

Costs within education, agricultural research, cooperative extensions, the College of Medicine, the Pennsylvania College of Technology and the Dickinson School of Law are continuing to rise, Erickson said.

"Without continuing state support, these programs cannot operate at the extent they have [in the past]," he said.

Erickson said the university already had to put in a budget request for the 2004-05 academic year by estimating this year's numbers.

"This is a very unique situation, formulating next year's request while this year's has yet to be finalized," he said.

Erickson said the university has requested the same increase -- $28.3 million -- as the 2001-02 academic year.

The university has also requested a special report for the College of Medicine, Erickson said.

"The college can no longer be supported from clinic revenues," he said, adding that the college only receives a small share of its operating budget from the state.

The university has also requested $10 million in base operations support for the College of Medicine, and it plans to request a similar increase over the next two years, Erickson said.

"We will not compromise quality in the face of these challenges," he said.

Vanessa Massaro contributed to this report.