Penn State is pleased that the governor has finally signed off on the university's appropriation check for this academic year. However, there seems to be a problem with the date. The money was given on Dec. 23, but the academic year began much earlier.

Although it is nice that the state government offered more than it had originally proposed, the tardiness of the budget is inexcusable, and it is still significantly less than earlier years. Other states across the nation are dealing with similar financial problems, but those states still managed to come to respective decisions.

Of course, Penn State was not the only institution affected. Across Pennsylvania, agencies relying on state funding didn't have that money to work with either. Penn State ran using tuition dollars and endowment funds.

It is nearing the time for Penn State to request funds for next year. We hope this blunder will not set a precedent for future budget decisions, which begin next month. For Pennsylvania, passing a budget well beyond a listed deadline casts a dark shadow over the future of the state. There is much talk of efforts to keep students in Pennsylvania following college graduation. But if the state government can't pass an annual budget without going six months late, everyone involved in the state legislature looks irresponsible.

Who wants to live and work in an irresponsible state? Penn State received $307.8 million for the academic year, $1.38 million more than expected, which is a nice supplement. But, the appropriation was also $14.6 million less than last year's initial funding.

The question becomes: Which is better? Mid-year funding cuts or incredibly late grants of money? Both of the methods the state has used in the past few years hurt students by making the Penn State education less affordable. But the school's prestige means people will still pay to come here.

The change could be in the groups that are able to attend the university. In what may become a future trend, Penn State could see more students from upper- and middle-class families, while fewer students who pay their own tuition or are from lower-income brackets are able to attend.

Back in 2000, Pennsylvania gave more than $330 million to the university. Yet, the cost of educating students and maintaining campus facilities has not gone down. To compensate, tuition goes up and corners are cut. As this downward trend continues, Penn State comes closer to becoming a private university, and the quality of education declines as class size increases.