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WEEKLY SUMMER ISSUE Slip Satlu ufetr Heel Rubbing Elbows UNC students have packed summer classrooms. See Page 3 www.dailytarheel.com Lottery Gets Mixed Reviews From BOG By Rohit Patel Staff Writer Gov. Mike Easley’s proposal for a state lot tery, which will fund enrollment growth throughout the UNC system, has drawn crit icism from several members of the system Board of Governors. The governor’s proposal, which was included in the budget that he submitted to the N.C. General Assembly last week, called for a statewide lottery to provide $66 million in enrollment growth funding for the UNC system. All told, Easley expects the lottery to provide about $250 million in revenue for the state during the next fiscal year. The BOG approved tuition hikes in March of 8 percent for in-state students and 12 per cent for out-of-state students to fund about half of the UNC system’s enrollment growth General Assembly Convenes The 2002 short session of the N.C. General Assembly will focus primarily on the $2 billion budget deficit. By Alex Kaplun Editor RALEIGH - With little pomp and a daunting task before them, state lawmak ers convened Tuesday for the 2002 short session of the N.C. General Assembly. While there was little discussion on the session’s first day about the state’s budget deficit - which has grown to approximately $2 billion for the 2002- OS fiscal year - it is sure to be the main topic of discussion for lawmakers in the next few months. The budget crisis, one of the worst in state history, is the result of both increased spending for some state pro grams and decreased revenue collections due to the state’s sluggish economy. See LEGISLATURE, Page 2 WXYC Escapes Shutdown After Copyright Ruling The Library of Congress ruled last week that the radio station would not have to pay royalties for its Internet broadcasts. By Meredith Nicholson University Editor The Library of Congress rejected a recommendation from the Copyright Arbitration and Royalty Panel on May 21 that could have caused WXYC, UNC’s student-run radio station, to stop broadcasting online. The panel has until June 20 to make further recommenda tions to the Library of Congress, which is responsible for all cases involving copyright laws. In February, the panel recommended legislation requiring royalty fees, reports on items to be broadcast and restrictions on what can be broadcast over the Internet. Had the legislation passed, stations simulcasting online would have been required to do extensive reporting on the music they broadcast over the Internet. The song title, artist, album title, record label, copyright number and other items, would have had to be displayed on the Internet broadcast. All the required information would be difficult to obtain because much of WXYC’s music collection contains old records and because the station’s staff, composed of student See WXYC, Page 2 needs -a total of $33 million. Lottery proposals are nothing new to North Carolina, having been debated sever al times in the state legislature over the past decade. But no governor has lobbied as hard as Easley for the educational benefits that may arise from such a lottery. Nevertheless, many leaders from across the state have criticized the governor’s plan in the last week and are concerned about the effec tiveness of the lottery. Robert Warwick, a member of the BOG and a vocal proponent of the tuition increase approved by the BOG in March, said he does not support Easley’s proposal. “I do not believe that enrollment growth should be funded through a nonexistent rev enue source,” he said. “The lottery is on the governor’s wish list but has not yet been 0 .: ..-^fp^ -gHJ| 881--^ : H ..jiMliMflntfflHHsflH tmusmm Paul Senate President Pro Tem Marc Basnight, D-Dare, speaks to the N.C. Senate at the opening of the 2002 short session Tuesday. Basnight did not address the summer's main topic of discussion, North Carolina's budget deficit. UNC Plans for 5-Year Budget By Brook Corwin Staff Writer A comprehensive five-year plan to serve as a road map for UNC-Chapel Hill’s financial growth - including future levels of tuition - was discussed by University officials at last week’s Board of Trustees meeting. During presentations to the BOT’s Audit, Business and Finance Committee, Nancy Suttenfield, vice chancellor for finance and administration, presented the timeline for the plan, which calls for long term financial plans in each University department to be finalized by the end of the calendar year. The plan includes a phase to craft a five-year tuition increase proposal that will be ready for approval by the BOT in spring 2003. During the meeting, University offi cials acknowledged that long-term plan ning is uncommon in higher education but said the mounting state budget deficit makes it necessary to outline long-term growth. The state is facing a budget shortfall approaching $2 billion, which might mean cuts of at least 5 per cent to the UNC system. “We must keep our focus not just on managing these cuts but also in looking at the long-term horizon,” said Chancellor James Moeser. “It’s important that we not become obsessed or depressed with the Nothing spoils a good party like a genius. Elsa Maxwell Serving the students and the University community since 1893 Light My Fire Local indie band Roman Candle chronicles its cross-country tour. See www.dailytarHtel.com approved by the legislature.” When the BOG approved the increases, it vyas operating under the assumption that the money would be used to fund additional enrollment. But through his budget proposal, Easley does not plan to use the tuition increases to fund enrollment. His plan calls for a state lottery to fund the full $66 million, a move that Warwick oppos es. “I believe that the lottery is an unstable source of revenue,” he said. “In my opinion, the governor should have honored our request. We approved the increase with the understanding that the rev enue would be used specifically for enroll ment.” But BOG member H.D. Reaves said he supports Easley’s actions. present situation.” The financial plan comes more than four months after the UNC system Board of Governors requested that each of the 16 sys tem schools sub mit a five-year tuition plan by the BOG’s October meeting. In response to the request, UNC CH officials pledged to form a tuition committee composed of administrators, faculty and students, but the committee has yet to be established. Provost Robert Shelton said he plans to name the committee members and have the committee meet this summer to begin work on drafting a tuition pro posal by the end of the fall semester. Shelton said the BOG has placed less emphasis on finishing the tuition pro posal because of uncertainty regarding the state budget deficit but that he still wants to get started on the process before anew budget is in place. “We have to get the ball rolling on this,” Shelton said. “My guess is that Second Seed Baseball travels south for the NCAA regional tournament. See Page 7 Volume 110, Issue 45 “I’m happy with Governor Easley’s lottery proposal,” he said. “It’s irrelevant how the state chooses to raise the money for addition al enrollment. “Our main priority should be to ensure that our universities are accessible to as many people as possible.” The BOG included a provision in its tuition plan that stated that if the legislature raises more than $33 million for enrollment, the increases would be scaled back propor tionally. But both Warwick and BOG member Ray Farris, who was one of only a handful of BOG member to vote against the tuition increase, said they do not expect the tuition increase to be scaled back even if the lottery is approved. The University Editor can be reached at udesk@unc.edu. n Provost Robert Shelton encouraged a long-term financial outlook for the University. X once the state budget clears in August, the BOG will want to see a tuition plan as soon as possible.” But Tom Stafford, vice chancellor for student affairs at N.C. State University, said the school has not made any progress in drafting a five-year tuition plan because it was given indication from UNC-system president Molly Broad’s office to wait until the new state budget is approved. “The sense we got was that the pres ident’s office probably wanted to wait to see how the budget would pan out," Stafford said. “The intent (to draft a tuition plan) is still there, but we were told to put all that work on hold.” A cloudy budget forecast was also cited by N.C. State officials as the prima ry reason why the school has no inten tion of drafting a five-year financial plan like the one UNC-CFI just announced. Shelton said that because future state funding for higher education is difficult to anticipate, UNC-CH’s financial plan will focus on identifying areas of resource emphasis and will not set in stone bud getary figures for another couple of years. “This plan basically outlines the bud get process,” Shelton said. “It will give us a sense of where we’re going.” The University Editor can be reached at udesk@unc.edu. Weather Today: Stormy; H 78, L 57 Wednesday: Stormy; H 86, L6l ( Sunday: Stormy; H 85, LSB * * iyi * wmmmmmm Betting on the Lottery Gov. Mike Easley's 8 ® lottery proposal calls 7 for funding to a initiatives. Of the 5250 million the lottery' is expected to generate, 566.8 9^3 go to fund enrollment 2 growth for the UNC system. 1. School-Based Incentive Awards $79.8 _ 2. Enrollment Changes: Regular (University) $54.6 a 3. Enrollment Changes (Community Colleges) $29.5 4. More at Four Pre-K Program $28.1 S 5. Class Size Reductions $26.2 5 6. Enrollment Changes: Distance (University) $12.2 7. Aid to Students Attending Private Colleges $2.2 2 8. T.E.A.C.H. Program $2.6 £. 9. Teacher Preparation Endowment $l.O B 10. Unalloted Funds $13.7 2. somo: <;uv mike limits proposed bi dot DTH ADRIAI DALE Town Considers Changing Policy For Halloween Police Chief Gregg Jarvies says the town should repeal some of the crowd control procedures put in place for last year's bash. By Alison Board Staff Writer In response to complaints from Chapel Hill residents and Franklin Street merchants last October, the Chapel Hill Police Department will recommend a revision to its approach to the control of the unofficial celebration of Halloween this year. Reverting back to the public safety polices that governed Halloween 2000, traffic will be able to enter the downtown area again, although barricades will remain on Franklin Street at Church Street and Boundary Street. Alcohol and weapons checks will also remain part of the program. The changes must still be approved by the Chapel Hill Town Council. Last year, the police erected barriers at nearly all the major intersections on the town’s circumference within a 1 1/2-mile radius of the downtown area. These barricades were intended to reduce crowd size and divert incoming traffic so fewer peo ple would crowd the downtown area, said Chapel Hill Police Chief Greggjarvies. In addition to the barriers, the town had 300 law enforce ment officials on hand to control the crowd. The total cost of running and policing the festivities was $112,000. While the crowd size was reduced from a previous 50,000 revelers to under 30,000, the barriers and their effects on the party atmosphere angered some merchants, residents and vis itors alike. Extreme traffic congestion resulted, and many res idents felt their freedom to move had been restricted. Jarvies and the town hope to combat traffic congestion by potentially using a shuttle service originating at University Mall and dropping passengers off on Franklin Street. “We hope this solution would allow traffic to be reduced in the downtown area while still allowing residents their free dom of movement,” he said. Bar and restaurant owners expressed frustration, voicing their grievances at a public forum held last week. They also reported to the police directly that they lost money because the big profits that are normally associated with the Halloween celebration did not materialize as thev had expected. Jarvies pointed out that other merchants were delighted with the results of last year’s public safety measure because fit ter, damage and vandalism were reduced. He emphasized that, “Our approach to Halloween is essentially crowd safety.” “The more people you have, the more things can get out of hand, but if the citizens of our town want to participate, it is our responsibility to manage it.” Managing Halloween crowds of such proportions is noth ing new to a police department well-acquainted with large scale gatherings that have traditionally occurred following major UNC basketball and football victories. Last year’s celebration had a stronger undertone of concern due to the still-fresh events of Sept. 11 and numerous anthrax scares the town had received in the aftermath. The more strin gent policies were a direct result of the more intense environ ment that such scares had fostered. The change in policy for this year reflects an underlying change in the country and town’s mood. Jarvies and the department do not perceive the same threats to Chapel Hill that they did last year. “We just want to plan the best for the community and for the people who are in town visiting,” he said. “We hope they have a good time, but we also want them to be safe.” The City Editor can be reached at citydesk@unc.edu.
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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May 30, 2002, edition 1
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