News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
The State Legislature did not fund Tennessee Tech’s new College of Engineering in its new fiscal year budget.
The 100,000 square foot project would be the first new building for the program in 50 years. State Senator Paul Bailey said the $55 million project among the cuts made to get a balanced budget.
“That was one of the projects that actually did not get funded,” Bailey said. “So we were disappointed in that. But hopefully, if our economy bounces back, which which I believe that it will, maybe we can get that in there for next year.”
The Tennessee Higher Education Commission gave the College of Engineering its top budget priority coming into the new budget year. The state funded planning of the building last year.
Among the toughest decisions in Thursday night’s marathon session, Bailey said the state also eliminated pay raises for state employees.
“When it comes to pay raises for our state employees and teachers, we had originally planned on, you know, giving giving those employees a four percent pay raise,” Bailey said. “But at the end of the day, the money just wasn’t going to be there for us to be able to do that.”
Legislators did fund the Basic Education Plan fully. Bailey said that was a positive in the midst of the pandemic.
