Government Meeting 3/3: Huntington City Council Meeting

Huntington City Council honored a Huntington resident and also voted on various topics such as junk removal, a skate park and a Second Chance Prom during Monday’s meeting.

Mayor Steve Williams spoke on the behalf of Huntington High School senior Kelsi Burns for her achievements in both academics and sports. Burns has been accepted to the United States Military Academy in West Point on a soccer scholarship.

An ordinance that will require Huntington residents to remove junk from their yards and porches was approved by all present council members. This ordinance is a portion of Mayor Steve Williams’ beautification plan. The plan was laid out in his State of the City address.

The ordinance will go into full effect July 1. Williams spoke on behalf of the ordinance and stated that residents will have enough time to remove unwanted furniture and junk from their porches and yards. If residents do not comply with the ordinance, they will face up to $500 fines or even time in jail.

The council also approved a resolution that will allow Williams to apply for a federal justice grant of $28,000 to hire a compliance officer to work within the Huntington Police Department. 

The council voted and agreed to a second reading of an ordinance that would fund a skate park. The park would be located in the western end of Harris Riverfront Park. The plans for the park would be divided into three phases, the first one costing a little over $65,000.  Council members expressed concerns about liability issues for the park, but still agreed the park would benefit the city’s youth.

The meeting concluded with final approval of a Second Chance Prom was also granted by council members. The prom will from 7-10 p.m. Friday at the Big Sandy Superstore Arena in the Conference Room. All council members in attendance voted in favor of the resolution, and many spoke about the importance of the event.

City Council Meeting tomorrow (3/25/13

I will be attending the Huntington City Council meeting at 7:30 p.m. on March 25, 2013 as my third and final government meeting requirement for this semester.

Government Meeting 2/3: Marshall University Faculty Senate

The Marshall University faculty senate meeting focused on information from an annual report by University President Stephen Kopp, including employee compensation within the university budget and education reform within the state government Thursday afternoon.

Dr. Stephen Kopp, president of the university, showcased a powerpoint that displayed Marshall’s operating expenditures and the amount of the money that goes to the university's employees for salary and benefits. The report showed that 62 percent of the operating expenditures goes to this cause. 

The report also showed that Marshall employs more full professor ranked positions than most or all of the other universities accounted for by the SREB. Other positions include associate professors and assistant professors. These positions are typically divided into thirds in other institutions. 

Another important issue Kopp discussed was possible solutions for budget cuts Marshall will be directly effected by included in a education bill currently being edited in the House of Representatives. 

This bill would account for a 8.94 percent reduction in funding for 4-year institutions, such as Marshall, which would effect things such as scholarships, grants and tuition cost for future and current students. The budget cut would account for a $6.5 million loss for Marshall, and $1.2 for the medical school alone.

A solution Kopp brought up was a tax increase on pop and alcohol. Currently, the state of W.Va. imposes a 1 cent tax on every container of pop sold in the state. The tax brings in close to $16 million for just one university in the state, which does not include Marshall. Kopp stated his advocacy for a bipartisan bill that would increase this tax on pop and perhaps even include alcohol to generate revenue for the state and to benefit all of W.Va.’s higher education institutions. 

Kopp also stated his distress that a consequence of budget cuts would unfortunately be a raise in tuition. A $730 raise in tuition would be the smallest amount necessary to compensate for the loss in funding.

Kopp concluded his presentation with a call to action to senate members to help him in his efforts to find a solution to the budget cut that would not impose a raise in tuition.

The meeting concluded after some questions and comments from the audience and senate members and some summary reports from the AFC, Library Commitee and Dean Steve Hensley. The faculty senate will meet again on Thursday April, 25.

Faculty Senate Meeting tomorrow (3/14/13)

I will be attending the Marshall University Faculty Senate meeting at 4 p.m. on March 14, 2013 as my second government meeting requirement for this semester.