Senate passes $1.46 mil. budget, recesses for summer

Wednesday, June 3, 2009 - 7:07 PM

Click here to read the entire budget (.xlsx file)

Click here to read the live blog of the senate meeting.

The student senate unanimously passed a $1.46 million budget today that excluded a major part of the one recommended by student President Eli Reilly — a $100,000 job creation program.

Sen. Sean Hostmeyer, chair of the budget and finance committee, said the program’s 25 new jobs didn’t justify the cost. Divvying the money to other parts of the student government could help more students and programs, he said.

The extra money was used to better fund Insight Magazine, the Brushfire, Wolf Pack Radio, and to raise the wages in several other departments.

Reilly said the job creation program was a step in a new direction for the student government.

“We’re in the middle of a recession,” he said. “Students are having a hard time getting jobs and that was the impetus (of the program).”

He said he would not veto the senate’s budget because he understands the change.

“It’s two branches of the government for a reason,” he said.

Reilly said there was also concern over if the Office of Financial Aid would still use $100,000, originally intended as matching funds, to create jobs at UNR.

Hostmeyer said the Office of Financial Aid will still spend the money, though he’s not sure if it will be spent on creating new jobs or sustaining current jobs.

No officials from the Office of Financial Aid were available for comment.

The senate also maintained last year’s funding level for the homecoming board, $35,000.

In their last meeting the senators also:

passed a resolution urging university administrators to allow grade replacement for lower level undergraduate classes up to three semesters after the class was first taken;
established a committee on the development of south campus;
thanked the Nevada legislature for overriding Gov. Jim Gibbon’s veto of the domestic partnership act;
expressed condolences concerning the death of Robert Weems, the founding dean of the College of Business.

Nick Coltrain can be reached at ncoltrain@nevadasagebrush.com.