NVC passes budget, includes furloughs and early retirements - NATALIE HOFFMAN, Register

Relying on work furloughs and early retirements, Napa Valley College’s board of trustees approved the college’s 2010-11 tentative budget Thursday. Projecting a $40.7 million general fund, the budget reflects a continuing trend of shrinking state funds to community colleges, said John Nahlen, the college’s vice president of business and finance. “Over the last two years, we’ve lost almost four million from the budget,” he said. Recent efforts to soften the blow of state cuts include employee furloughs and early retirement incentive packages. Thirty-seven college employees are opting for the retirement package this summer, netting the college a $900,000 savings for the coming fiscal year, Nahlen said. Furloughs will start July 1 for two-thirds of the college’s approximately 300 permanent employees.