GRAND FORKS (AP) - The North Dakota Board of Higher Education's budget recommendations for the next two years might be "dead on arrival" at the state Capitol, a state lawmaker says.

The Board of Higher Ed is seeking a 53 percent spending increase from the Legislature for the state's university system.

Board members said when they approved the request in April that there is a need to address such long-term matters as keeping college affordable for students and ensuring that schools can compete in the marketplace for instructors.

The budget request limits tuition increases for students, boosts pay for college faculty and staff, and provides tens of millions of dollars for security improvements and deferred maintenance on campuses.

However, "What we're hearing is this has struck a nerve," said state Sen. Tracy Potter, D-Bismarck. "What I'm suggesting is they've got a real public perception problem with their request, if not an overreaching problem. They need to either rework it or come up with another way for it to be perceived."

Sen. Ray Holmberg, R-Grand Forks, said he shares many of Potter's worries. Holmberg is chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, where the Higher Education budget will begin to take its final form.

"If the more liberal members of the Legislature are concerned that the amount is too much," Holmberg said, referring to Potter, "what are the conservative members saying? … I think it would really be a struggle."

University System Chancellor Bill Goetz acknowledged public concern about the requested budget increase, but said he thinks it will gain support, once people look into the details.

"People need to understand what the budget is, what the initiatives are and the reason for the increases," he said. "A lot of what's in the budget raises issues that need to be addressed. There needs to be a public dialogue about these issues and a determination as to whether or not there's support for those initiatives."

Goetz said the budget request was not artificially inflated as a bargaining tool.

"That doesn't enter in at all," he said.

The budget request was approved in April on a 6-1 vote, but several board members said they were not given enough time to examine the proposal in detail. When board members asked if they could delay voting, university system office staff said that would impede campuses from doing their own budgeting.

The staff told board members their vote locked in all of the budget's dollar figures, but that they could still prioritize certain budget line items later.

Board President John Paulsen said this week that the board might decide to revise some budget figures at its June meeting.

"Obviously, we need to be concerned about the legislative reaction and the public reaction," he said.