University of Nebraska officials worry their campuses may lose as much as $15 million in federal funding because of the national budget woes.

Federal research awards already declined last fiscal year by three percent at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and by two percent at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.

Officials are still trying to determine how the university will be affected. It's hard to say now what the impact will be because federal agencies are handling the cuts differently.

NU lobbyist Matt Hammons says the university should be able to handle the cuts initially, but the effects will become more painful over time if the federal budget doesn't improve.

The University of Nebraska also says the four-campus system would be have to increase tuition by about four percent each of the next two years or make program cuts if its state funding comes in shorter than expected.

NU budget director Chris Kabourek told the NU Board of Regents on Friday that the system needs a 5.1 percent increase in state funding in order to meet its projected operating expenses for the next two years.

But the Legislature's Appropriations Committee has proposed a 2.5 percent increase. Gov. Dave Heineman has proposed a 4.2 percent increase or $62 million in exchange for a two-year tuition freeze.