SECOND OF 4 PARTS

While a majority of respondents feel there is not an overemphasis on athletics at the University of Hawaii, they also say the financially struggling athletic department should pay its own bills, the Hawaii Poll shows.

Fifty-three percent supported the statement that "the athletic department should be responsible for paying its own way without taking from student tuition or taxpayer funds, even if that means some sports may be eliminated."

The Hawaii Poll was conducted by Ward Research Inc. for the Hono­lulu Star-Advertiser and Hawaii News Now among 403 respondents Jan. 13-23. There is a margin of error of 4.9 percentage points.

The poll comes as UH officials have said they can no longer continue to hike institutional support and intend to ask the Legislature for $3 million this session while looking to the community for additional funding.

The athletic department has run in the red for 10 of the past 12 years and is projected to accumulate a $3.5 million deficit for the current fiscal year, which closes June 30, the UH Board of Regents has been told.

UH officials have periodically warned that the department might have to pare some offerings from its 21-team, $32 million program if the bottom line continues to sag.

Thirty-one percent of respondents agreed that "the university should find other sources of money (like tuition or donations) to cover deficits." Nine percent believed "the Legislature should use taxpayer money to cover UH sports deficits," while 3 percent endorsed none of the options and 4 percent didn’t know or refused to answer.

In 2013 then-Manoa Chancellor Tom Apple wrote off a $17 million net deficit accumulated over a decade, warning the department that it had three years to begin balancing its bottom line.

In August, athletic director Ben Jay made national news when he suggested to a Board of Regents committee that cutting football could become an option. But hours later he said no teams were in peril. "My comments," Jay said, "were made in order to convey a sense of urgency regarding the need to address our current funding model."

UH has not dropped a sport since 1985, when it eliminated women’s track so it could add softball. Track was reinstated in 2000. The last men’s sports to be dropped were track and wrestling in 1977.

Officials have said that the teams that would most likely face elimination — non-income sports such as golf, tennis or swimming — would not save much, and that any cuts would have to be balanced so as to comply with Title IX, the federal law that mandates equal opportunities for women.

Among those who felt that athletics should pay its own way, the sentiment was most strong among women (58 percent), especially in the age-55-and-older bracket (56 percent).

A USA Today survey of 2013 finances showed UH athletics, which generated approximately 60 percent of its revenue, was eighth among 12 schools in the Mountain West, where the Rainbow Warriors play football, in subsidies. In the Big West, where most of UH’s teams compete, Hawaii was last among nine schools in subsidies received.

UH athletics received $1,563,721 in student fees in 2014, according to an independent audit.

When asked "How do you feel about (UH’s) emphasis on intercollegiate athletics?" 50 percent said "there is about the right amount of emphasis," and 18 percent said "there is not enough emphasis on athletics."

Twenty-four percent claimed "there is too much emphasis on athletics," and 9 percent either didn’t know or refused to answer.

Respondents who listed their ages as 55 and above were the largest (38 percent) group viewing an overemphasis on athletics, while the under-35 age bracket (56 percent) registered the strongest feeling that the emphasis was "about right."