University of Nebraska President J.B. Milliken on Monday defended an e-mail he sent to NU students, faculty and staff last week informing them of possible impacts of a proposed state spending lid — an e-mail some critics say may have ducked state law.

In writing that Initiative 423 would likely result in sharp tuition increases and cuts to academic programs, Milliken might have violated a law that prohibits public employees from using taxpayer resources to advocate for or against ballot items, critics say.

But Milliken said the e-mail only urged members of the NU community to educate themselves on the issue, nothing more.

“My e-mail did not encourage people to vote one way or another,” he said. “I told people the possible consequences. Now they can make their own choices.”

One part of the e-mail reads: “Maintaining affordable access to education is the university’s highest priority — one which will almost certainly be affected if Initiative 423 would pass. To make up the difference that would result from Initiative 423, our budget office projects tuition could rise as much as 57 percent in the next two years.”

The e-mail also says that if the spending lid had been put in place 10 years ago, NU’s 2007 state appropriations would be $134 million less than what they are today — roughly the size of UNL’s entire City Campus budget.

And those numbers, Milliken says, are optimistic.

Initiative 423, dubbed Stop OverSpending Nebraska, is a proposed constitutional amendment that would tie state spending increases to inflation and population growth. Voters will decide on it Nov. 7.

One of the initiative’s sponsors, Mike Groene of North Platte, said Monday he’d forwarded Milliken’s e-mail to a lawyer for review. He didn’t know whether legal action would be pursued.

Either way, Groene said, the e-mail violated at least the spirit of the law.

“I don’t think it’s proper etiquette,” he said. “This isn’t what we hired (Milliken) to do. I expect him to be managing our college.

“The taxpayers own the university. Not him.”

In a similar charge, Groene last Thursday filed complaints with the state Accountability and Disclosure Committee alleging that public school officials had used tax dollars to fight the spending lid.

Among the allegations were that officials from the Ashland-Greenwood School District and Valley County had used their public e-mail accounts and time at work to dissuade people from voting for Initiative 423.

Now he says that Milliken’s actions, legal or not, were highly improper.

Milliken’s “slanted” e-mail is an attempt to scare young, impressionable college students into voting against the initiative by threatening them where it hurts most, Groene said — their pocketbooks.

“It’s just very disingenuous.”

But Jack Gould of government-watchdog group Common Cause said Milliken’s message didn’t raise his ire.

NU lobbies often for various causes without legal repurcussion, Gould said, and he doubted this case would be any different.

“And I don’t think this is going beyond the pale,” he said. “They have a right to make these kinds of (financial) predictions.”

Ron Withem, NU vice president and general counsel, also backed Milliken, saying the e-mail fully complied with the law.

“(The law) does allow communication about the likely impact of a ballot measure,” Withem said. “We have a responsibility to let people know, and then they can make up their own mind.”

For his part, Milliken said communication is one of his most important duties as NU’s leader.

And he said students, faculty and staff would’ve been shocked if he hadn’t provided some sort of analysis on a ballot proposal that could significantly impact NU.

“Part of my job is to identify what resources are needed to support the University of Nebraska,” he said. “I want to fulfill my obligation.

“I can’t imagine the reaction if I had said nothing.”

Reach Melissa Lee at 473-2682 or mlee@journalstar.com.