Massachusetts state schools and community colleges must tighten their financial belts again due to Governor Mitt Romney’s emergency $12 million higher-education budget cuts.

The budget cut affects all 15 community colleges, nine state colleges and the five University of Massachusetts campuses, all in the middle of their academic year.

The largest blow came to the University of Massachusetts system, which lost $6.2 million, about 1.4 percent of its state appropriation. With this current cut, the university has lost almost 10 percent of its funding over the last two years.

Hiring freezes are in place and efforts are underway to reduce administrative costs and projects at UMass, according to John Hoey, director of communications for UMass Boston President William M. Bulger. He said layoffs are not likely at this time.

‘This late into academic year, it’s really difficult to do that type of thing,’ he said. ‘There’s not much flexibility with what to do with a $6 million cut with only five months left of the year.’

‘Everyone has to tighten up their belts,’ said Jodi Charles, deputy press secretary for Romney. ‘We’re dealing with a financial disaster.’

Charles argued the cuts do not amount to much, however.

‘It’s like pennies on the dollar,’ she said. ‘It’s not like a huge amount is being taken away from them.’

With an estimated $2 billion to $3 billion state deficit next year, all institutions should contribute, Charles said.

‘We need to focus on the deficit now and make sure everyone helps out,’ Charles said. ‘Next year we’re going to have to do deal with the same thing.’

Administrators at Salem State College are taking measures similar to those of UMass in this financial crisis.

Karen Cady, director of college relations for Salem State, said a hiring freeze has been in place since last year, not allowing the college to replace the 60 employees who retired last year, 30 of whom retired under the state’s early retirement program, a program designed to help schools’ budgets.

‘Beginning last year, we started to trim the fat,’ Cady said, ‘not that we’d had much fat since we had been level funded last year.’

The school has also cut back on computer lab access hours and bus shuttle service, while increasing class sizes and tuition. The school even shut down for a week over the winter holiday to save $50,000 in heating.

‘It’s all the little extras that really hurt,’ Cady said.

Disappointed by the amount UMass’ budget was cut, Hoey said the university has a ‘tremendous impact on the economy of Massachusetts’ and understands the difficult financial condition of the state.

Throughout the budget cuts over the last couple years, schools across the state have been trying to compensate for their losses in other ways.

Salem State College is compensating for some loss with an increased enrollment, even though tuition increased from $450 to $900, Cady said. She also said the college receives money from its fundraising arm, but ‘the state is really what funds the school.’

UMass has also increased its private donations over the last seven years from $36 million per year to $95 million per year.

According to Hoey, some of the university’s budget not covered by the state comes from research and products the school produces and sells to Massachusetts companies.

Despite the budget cuts, Cady said quality of the education is still top priority.

‘That’s really our bottom line,’ she said. ‘We are doing everything possible to uphold the academic quality of our programs.’