University to reduce budget again

Note: The following story has been edited to correct errors regarding faculty salaries. The Pitt… Note: The following story has been edited to correct errors regarding faculty salaries. The Pitt News regrets the errors.

The Budget Committee of the University’s Board of Trustees voted unanimously this morning to reduce its budget for the second year in a row.

The board voted to reduce its operating budget by $8.3 million. The reductions will be split across various departments. Chancellor Mark Nordenberg said it’s possible that some positions could be eliminated but that, “We’re not planning any large-scale layoffs.”

Arthur Ramicone, vice chancellor for budget and controller, said the University delayed some of its construction plans to provide for the budget reductions. For example, the University chose to postpone renovating several floors of the Chevron Science Center, he said.

Nordenberg noted at the meeting, which was held in Posvar Hall, that the 2010 budget will be contingent upon state and federal funding.

The state House of Representatives voted late last night, about six months past its deadline, to give Pitt $177.9 million in funding. The bill currently awaits Governor Ed Rendell’s signature.

The Board expects to receive the same amount of funding in 2010.

Ramicone said students will likely see tuition increases in 2011, but that it was too early to project how large those increases will be. The University must wait until it hears its funding projections from the state, most likely in February.

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