On Wednesday, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the state budget for Fiscal Year 2024-2025, which will provide Florida State University with significant operational support and new funds for capital projects during the next fiscal year and bolster FSU in advancing its mission as one of the top public universities in the country.
The Florida Legislature approved the 2024-2025 state budget in March at the end of the 2024 Legislative Session.
“We are grateful to the Florida Legislature and Gov. DeSantis for providing crucial funding that will allow Florida State University to continue our incredible momentum and elevate our national prominence,” said President Richard McCullough. “This funding is vital as we grow our research enterprise, retain and recruit outstanding faculty, students and staff, and invest in key initiatives that will benefit our students, our state and our nation.”
FSU will receive $20 million in recurring operational enhancement funds that it plans to invest in hiring prominent research faculty and building upon its nation-leading student success efforts. The university also will receive $55 million in non-recurring operational enhancement funds that it will use for capital renewal, investments in IT infrastructure and start-up costs for FSU Health, an initiative to improve health outcomes in North Florida and beyond.
The state appropriated $100 million in new recurring Preeminence funding and another $100 million for State University System Recruitment and Retention, which the Board of Governors will allocate among the state universities.
The new state budget also includes $5 million in non-recurring funds for the Institute for Pediatric Rare Diseases, which will continue to support a laboratory for newborn genetic screening and provide additional support to bolster the strong biomedical research program. FSU also received $8 million in non-recurring funds to support the Florida Institute for Governance and Civics.
FSU will receive nearly $83 million in new funds for capital projects. The state funded four of FSU’s top capital appropriation requests for the second consecutive year:
- $55.4 million to renovate and redesign research space in the Dittmer Chemistry Lab Building, which was built in 1967. This appropriation fully funds this capital project.
- $10 million for relocation of FSU’s 45-year-old maintenance complex, which will free up space in the center of campus for core academic, research, and student services.
- $7.5 million in funding for construction of the Veterans Legacy Complex, a project that will better address the unique veteran and military students’ special needs.
- $5 million in funding for continued planning and construction of the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering Building C, which is needed to accommodate the projected growth of the college’s enrollment and research expansion.
In addition, FSU will receive $3 million to build the Center for Energy Independence, a dedicated research infrastructure for handling hydrogen and other energy sources, positioning the State of Florida as a leader in energy independence.
The university also will receive $2 million for the design and planning of a new state-of-the-art facility for the College of Nursing, a growing college that attracts the second-most NIH funding in the nation among public schools of nursing.