Universities across the United States are grappling with a significant backlog of deferred maintenance costs, with some institutions turning to building demolitions as a strategy to reduce accumulated expenses. Officials gathered at the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association’s policy conference discussed the expanding scale of the problem and various state approaches to addressing it.
Kansas has emerged as a case study in tackling deferred maintenance through aggressive demolition. The six universities governed by the Kansas Board of Regents have eliminated $123 million in deferred maintenance costs through tearing down buildings, while also reducing ongoing operational expenses. Kansas officials assessed their institutions’ needs and determined that bringing mission-critical facilities to a functional state would require $1.66 billion, with full restoration to optimal condition exceeding $3 billion.
Researchers have documented substantial variation in how states fund capital projects and maintenance needs. A comprehensive analysis examined over 1,100 statutes and policy documents, combined with more than 60 interviews, revealing that 28 states have implemented specific deferred-maintenance approaches. These include funding formulas tied to facility replacement costs, dedicated tax revenues, and mandatory appropriation requirements. Montana requires legislators to allocate 0.6 percent of facility replacement value to deferred maintenance before approving new capital spending, while Louisiana mandates that institutions establish maintenance reserves for non-state-funded buildings.
Despite the potential effectiveness of systematic funding approaches, practical implementation faces challenges. Building demolitions, while financially effective, have become increasingly controversial as faculty and alumni express attachment to historic structures. Additionally, deferred maintenance—which includes essential but unglamorous work like HVAC repairs, electrical system upgrades, and plumbing maintenance—struggles to attract private donor support compared to more visible campus projects. Universities and state legislatures continue to weigh immediate financial pressures against the risk that deferred repairs will escalate into more expensive problems.
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