DAILY LOBO new mexico
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tuesday January 29, 2013
The Independent Student Voice of UNM since 1895
Athletics owes UNM $1.2M Athletics tightens own budget to pay back loan by Ardee Napolitano news@dailylobo.com
It will take the Athletics Department more than eight years to pay back the $1.25 million loan it took from the University last year. Athletics Deputy Director Tim Cass said the department started paying back the loan at the beginning of July of last year. He said the University gave the department 10 years to pay back the loan, and that Athletics pays UNM $12,500 per month. Cass said the University gave Athletics this one-time loan in June of last year because football ticket sales were lower than expected. The department also spent more than expected, and it needed the loan to balance its budget for expenses such as team travel, equipment and scholarships for athletes. “Our projections and our budgets didn’t match our expenses,” he said. Athletics got the loan in addition to a $50 increase in student fees, which the UNM Board of Regents approved last April to assist with the department’s annual operating and studentathlete budget. Cass said funding for the University loan did not come from student fees, and the student fee increase is a separate issue. He said the University did not charge interest on the loan, and
Athletics organized a repayment plan for the loan at the time it was granted. Cass said football ticket sales increased this year and that Athletics received more money for playing road games. He said these increases in revenue are the main sources of money the department uses to pay back the loan. “We had a better year for football ticket sales this year,” he said. “And we receive, for example, a game guarantee for a road football game where we played the University of Texas this year and got $1 million. And we have several game-guarantee games slated.” Cass said that although UNM is the highest-ranked athletic department in the Mountain West Conference, it spends less than other participating universities. “What should be noted is that we have operated on the leanest budget and with the highest national finish,” he said. “We have self-generated about 83 percent of our own budget. Only 17 percent of our income comes from student fees or government or institutional support.” According to a budget document from Athletics, the department expects to spend $29.4 million this fiscal year. The department budgeted $13 million for personnel costs, $3.9 million for grants for athletes and $3.1 million for team travel costs. The rest is for other expenses, including utilities, insurance, dues, taxes and equipment.
The document also shows the department received $3 million in student fees for the current fiscal year. The largest portion of revenue came from ticket sales, which was $6.6 million, followed by corporate sponsorships, which was $5.3 million. Cass said the amount of student fees Athletics receives from UNM is significantly lower than the amount of student fees other universities’ athletics departments receive. However, Cass would not let the Daily Lobo see the document from which he got this information. Cass said Athletics has made efforts to limit its spending to make it easier for the department to pay back the loan. “We primarily fly Southwest Airlines because there are no baggage fees,” he said. “That saves us $50,000 to $100,000. We’ve also done away with a lot of landlines in offices because people are using their mobile devices much more.” Cass said that although the $29.4 million budget is primarily focused on operations of Athletics, aiding the department helps the University as a whole. “Yes it’s affecting the 450 student athletes, but it’s actually affecting the rest of the students,” he said. “I think there’s an element of camaraderie that goes with having competitive academic programs. To simply just divide 450 from $29 million, I think, is a little shallow.”
GAMERS GONE MAD
Rachel Toraño-Mark / Daily Lobo Eric Geusz packs up his sleeping bag and pillow Sunday afternoon after the conclusion of the Global Game Jam. Geusz said he slept only five hours during the 48-hour event. See full story on Page 5.
Lawmakers of two minds about gun control news@dailylobo.com
This week, the Legislature opened with two opposing bills: one to tighten New Mexico’s gun laws, and one to make federal gun control laws unenforced in the state. Hearings began Monday afternoon in the House Judiciary Committee on House Bill 77, a gun control bill sponsored by Rep. Miguel Garcia (D-Albuquerque). The bill, also known as the Firearms Transfer Act, seeks to outline more precise standards for prohibiting certain individuals, such as drug addicts or convicted felons, from owning firearms. In addition, it would establish procedures for background checks, create a process for governing gun purchases made at gun shows and establish criminal penalties for violating these new regulations. At Monday’s hearings, the Legislative Finance Committee released a fiscal impact report, which outlined concerns the committee had with the act. The report questioned whether the background check provisions
see Gun
Control PAGE 2
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are under 18 years of age (current New Mexico statutes do not specify a minimum age to possess rifles or shotguns, though they specify that anyone under 19 years of age cannot own a handgun.)
are subject to a restraining order regarding domestic violence, or have been convicted of a domestic violence misdemeanor
Senate Bill 11:
have received a dishonorable discharge from the U.S. armed forces
are a “fugitive from justice” have been convicted of, or are under indictment for, a felony
have been judged mentally incompetent or has been committed to a mental institution are unlawful users of or are addicted to alcohol or a controlled substance
The State Graduate Employment Tax Credit Bill would attempt to revitalize the New Mexico economy and prevent science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) graduate students from taking jobs out of state by offering tax credits to employers who would hire them. The Legislative Finance Committee listed the following concerns with the bill:
The tax credits are geared toward employers who hire students with STEM graduate degrees. According to the report, those students “already experience substantially higher earnings and lower unemployment rates than other graduates.” Therefore, there are no incentives to hire undergraduates or graduate students with non-STEM degrees.
Chavez charade
The Weekly
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are prohibited by federal law or the law of another jurisdiction
by John Tyczkowski
House Bill 77
IN SESSION
The Firearms Transfer Act seeks primarily to establish more stringent background checks, stricter regulation of gun sales and create penalties for violating these provisions. The bill would deny firearms to people who:
A report by the Legislative Finance Committee suggested several amendments for the bill. Here are some of the major changes:
- Clarification of the exact types of sources to be used by the New Mexico Department of Public Safety when conducting background checks with regard to private transfers at gun shows. - Elimination of state background check requirement in the case of firearms transfers within families, for collectors of firearms considered “relic” firearms by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, for those voluntarily transferring firearms to a law enforcement agency, for those acquiring firearms through the Civilian Marksmanship Program, and for those renting firearms at a private shooting range. - Elimination or reduction of fees associated with background checks and the requirement of only one fee for firearms transfers between two persons.
Employers would only receive a tax credit for hiring students who received their graduate degree at an in-state university. New Mexico residents who earned their graduate degrees out of state would not count for employers’ tax credit eligibility.
Free
The bill contains an annual $2 million tax credit cap statewide, which would cover 400 graduates at $5,000 a year. If more than 400 STEM graduates are hired in one year, employers might not receive their tax credit. This uncertainty might make businesses and corporations hesitant to hire graduates under the provisions in the bill, defeating its purpose.
TODAY
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