When legislators abdicate, burden falls to donors

The state Legislature wouldn't do it, so a private philanthropic group stepped up to fund a veterinarian school at the University of Arizona.

The $9 million from the Kemper and Ethel Marley Foundation will allow UA to launch an innovative program next year that's expected to lower the cost of getting a degree.

The Arizona Board of Regents previously recommended the Legislature fund it. Lawmakers didn't, despite strong support from Republicans Sen. Steve Pierce and Rep. Ethan Orr to provide $4.2 million.

Lawmakers were shortsighted. The need for more vets in rural Arizona has been discussed since 2007.

The arrival this summer of Midwestern University's graduate veterinary school in Glendale will help. But more than 600 people applied for 100 spots. Arizona's university system has an important role to play in meeting the demand.

After failing to get funding from the Legislature, UA President Ann Weaver Hart announced that she'd look for "a new business plan that relies on philanthropy and multiple sources of revenue, including more out-of-state and international students." The new school is expected to get half of its students from out of state.

The Marley Foundation stepped up, and the state's new vet school will be named for the family. In 1993, a building was named after the Marley family as a result of a $6 million gift to the UA College of Agriculture.

The Marley Foundation is a major charitable donor in Arizona, and the gift to UA is generous.

But lawmakers should not make a habit of abdicating their duty to fund important new endeavors at state universities.