University of Maine System FY27 budget maintains region-leading affordability, invests in students, employees

FORT KENT, Maine - University of Maine System (UMS) Trustees unanimously approved a balanced budget for the coming academic year that maintains the region's most affordable tuition and makes meaningful investments to improve student and employee success and retention.

At their regular meeting today at the University of Maine at Fort Kent (UMFK), Trustees passed the $717.7 million Fiscal Year 2027 (FY27) operating budget for the System (External Site), which is the state's most powerful engine of educational attainment and economic mobility and one of its largest employers.

Despite a declining number of high school graduates in Maine and New England, the System is projecting continued overall enrollment stability due to the growth of online programs like the University of Maine at Presque Isle's competency-based YourPace adult degree completion program (External Site), which has since expanded to include signature academic offerings from UMFK and the University of Maine at Farmington (UMF). Improvements in retention enabled by investment from the Harold Alfond Foundation through UMS TRANSFORMS (External Site) are also contributing to demographic-defying enrollment stability, student success and workforce readiness.

Amid rising operating costs, Trustees reluctantly agreed to a 4% tuition increase. Full-time in-state and Canadian residential undergraduate students will pay $1,000 more on average next year for tuition, fees, room and board - well below the consumer price increases most Mainers are experiencing.

Still, the approved FY27 budget maintains Maine's national leadership in public university affordability and access. The price of UMS tuition and fees has actually declined over the past five years when adjusted for inflation, and importantly, is a sharply decreasing share of the state's annual household (11.4%) and median (12.7%) incomes.

Working-age alumni of the flagship University of Maine who live in the state earn more than double Maine's average median income (External Site).

"Our public universities continue to deliver extraordinary value for students, families and Maine taxpayers at a time of significant financial uncertainty and rising costs nationwide," said Board Chair Trish Riley. "In reviewing and approving this budget, Trustees worked carefully to balance rising operating costs with our commitment to affordability, rigorous and relevant academic programs, student success and responsible stewardship of public resources."

Total in-state/Canadian undergraduate costs, inclusive of tuition, fees, room and board, will be $24,069 on average at Maine's public universities for the year. That's 32% less than the estimated 2026-27 cost at the University of New Hampshire ($35,756 (External Site)) and 35% less than the University of Massachusetts at Amherst ($37,256 (External Site)). The System's out-of-state and graduate tuition and fees are also the lowest in New England.

Most students will pay far less in FY27 than the list price, thanks to the System's budgeted $90.1 million investment in institutional need and merit scholarships and waivers, as well as need-based federal Pell and Maine State grants. For example, all UMS undergraduate universities offer some form of free college program for Maine students with financial need and not directly subsidized by the State, including UMaine's INSPIRE Maine Scholarship (External Site), the University of Maine at Augusta's Pine Tree State Pledge (External Site), UMF's Tuition Pledge (External Site), UMFK's Fort Kent Promise Program (External Site), UMaine Machias' Downeast Promise (External Site), UMPI's Free for Four Award (External Site) and the University of Southern Maine's Promise Scholarship (External Site).

"The University of Maine System is proving that transformative public higher education can remain affordable, innovative and high quality even in an increasingly challenging fiscal and demographic environment," said Chancellor Dannel Malloy. "Thanks to the hard work of our universities and the support of Governor Mills and the Legislature, this budget maintains the lowest university tuition and fees in New England while continuing to invest in the world-class people, programs and facilities that are essential to our students' success and economic mobility and the state's future prosperity."

To further strengthen the student experience in support of student recruitment, retention and career pathways and to accelerate research and innovation that advances Maine's economy, the UMS FY27 operating budget increases investment in university facilities by 6.3% as part of a broader effort championed by Chancellor Malloy to address decades of deferred maintenance.

The FY27 budget also invests $454.3 million in pay and benefits for UMS employees statewide, a 4.2% increase from the current fiscal year. Improved employee wages, including for newly represented graduate student workers, and increased health care costs are offset, in part, through $13.3 million in attrition savings from expected retirements and vacancies.

UMaine, which has uniquely been impacted by federal research funding cuts, demographic pressures and rising operating costs such as compensation, compliance and energy, had initially planned significant expense reductions for FY27 (External Site), including through employee layoffs. However, informed by its ongoing bold Strategic Re-Envisioning process (External Site) and a commitment to its students and employees as a learner-centered R1, the budget approved today reflects just the elimination of fewer than five of the university's approximately 2,200 regular employees and no faculty retrenchments. Decisions about specific positions impacted are still being finalized.

Increasing State appropriations, supported by Governor Mills and the Legislature, have been essential to the System maintaining its workforce and student affordability while also making strategic investments for the future. In addition to a 4% base appropriations increase and funding to offset the implementation of Maine's new paid Family and Medical Leave program provided in the State's FY26-27 biennial budget, UMS also secured $2 million in one-time dollars for a research opportunity fund in the recently enacted State supplemental budget.

Tuition and fees continue to be the System's largest revenue source (39.8%), followed by State appropriation (37.7%) and dining and housing (12.7%). System-wide residential hall occupancy is projected to be 91% in FY27, a modest increase from this year, attributed to vibrant student life opportunities, taking underutilized space offline and improvements to housing facilities.

Capital investments at UMaine will accelerate talent development, innovation

At Monday's meeting, Trustees also advanced new healthcare advanced degree programs at UMaine and a number of capital projects to strengthen Maine's talent pipeline, innovation economy and long-term competitiveness. Many are funded in large part by one-time Congressionally Directed Spending secured by U.S. Sen. Susan Collins (External Site) with the support of the Maine Congressional Delegation, as well as investment from the Harold Alfond Foundation through UMS TRANSFORMS (External Site). These included:

• renovations of the System's Maine Graduate and Professional Center (Maine Center) in Portland;
• the design of a state-of-the-art Health and Life Sciences Complex (External Site) so UMaine can continue to lead in solving the most urgent health and scientific challenges facing Maine and the nation;
• renovations to UMaine's Jenness Hall (External Site) to strengthen engineering and computing teaching and research and to the Darling Marine Center in Walpole's Marine Culture Laboratory (External Site) to increase the resilience of Maine's aquaculture industry;
• the construction of the Forest Biomaterials Innovation Center (External Site) at UMaine;
• and upgrades to UMaine's 1950s-era steam plant (UMEC (External Site)) to improve reliability and research continuity, lower long-term operating and maintenance costs, and significantly reduce fossil fuel use.

About the University of Maine System

The University of Maine System (UMS) is the state's largest driver of educational attainment and economic development and its seven public universities and law school are the most affordable in New England. Over the past two decades, UMS has awarded 106,362 degrees and spurred and strengthened thousands of small Maine businesses through its world-class research and development activities. For more information, visit https://www.maine.edu.

Media Contact:

Samantha WarrenChief External & Governmental Affairs Officer207-632-0389 / [email protected]