University at Buffalo - The State University of New York

By KEVIN FRYLING

Published: February 4, 2009

The Faculty Senate unanimously approved a resolution in support of the UB 2020 Flexibility and Economic Growth Act during the semester’s first meeting on Tuesday.

The UB 2020 proposal, sponsored by state legislators in the Western New York delegation, urges the adoption of “no cost, high impact” reforms designed to loosen the reins on UB’s fiscal operations in a manner similar to major research universities in other states.

“Considering the dire budget proposal, the fact that UB is being punished for being successful, the fact we’re so beneficial to the Western New York community, and that all our local state lawmakers support it unanimously, the Faculty Senate will now formally go on record to support the UB 2020 Flexibility and Economic Growth Act and join our voices as a group,” said Robert Hoeing, associate professor of linguistics and chair of the Faculty Senate.

The resolution is similar to another recently passed by the UB Council, he said.

“I firmly believe that if they continue to hurt UB, they’re going to hurt the entire SUNY system,” Hoeing added in support of the resolution.

In other business, Scott Nostaja, interim vice president for human resources and chief of staff for President John B. Simpson, presented an update on the continuing impact of the state’s financial crisis on UB.

In addition to a total of $20.5 million in cuts to UB’s annual budget under the state’s 2008-09 budget, Nostaja said the university could incur an additional $11.6 million in reductions under the state budget proposed for 2009-10.

“We’re clearly in the $30 million range,” he said.

In response, he said that UB plans to reconvene the university’s 15-member financial management advisory committee, created by Provost Satish K. Tripathi shortly after reductions began to appear in state support in May.

Among the actions for which the committee is responsible is the moratorium on all hiring and expenses in excess of $5,000, which Nostaja said has delayed the hiring of approximately 300 university employees as of mid-December. Increased efficiencies in FSA and housing also stand to garner UB $3 million in projected savings.

Also during Tuesday’s meeting, Hoeing was re-elected to a two-year term as chair of the Faculty Senate and Peter Nickerson, professor of pathology, to a three-year term as a senator and member of the Faculty Senate Executive Committee.