The Government of the Student Body will be voting whether to fund half the costs for the new Memorial Union sign, giving opportunities for student groups to advertise.

The contract would give $30,000 to the Memorial Union to help fund its electronic sign that sits on Lincoln Way. The project is expected to cost $60,000 in total. GSB, by funding half the money, would be allotted 50 percent of the message times to be given to student groups to be used as they see fit.

GSB Senator Adam Krupicka, graduate student in biophysics, biochemistry and molecular biology, said the first thing GSB would do if the project was approved is decide how to allocate time on the sign and to what groups. Krupicka said he intended to open up sign time to all registered student groups, even those that do not receive funding from GSB, because it is such a unique opportunity.

Richard Reynolds, director of the Memorial Union, said the sign was not originally budgeted for in the original renovation project because it was suggested that the sign would have to be relocated.

However, Reynolds said it was decided the sign would not have to be moved and the Memorial Union budgeted $30,000 for renovation of the sign.

Reynolds said he thought if GSB were to cover $30,000 and the Memorial Union used the $30,000 it had budgeted for, it should cover the cost of the renovation, and hoped the sign would be done soon.

“Fall of 2007 is what we’d be shooting for,” he said.

Krupicka said he hasn’t had too many in-depth conversations with student groups, but with the groups he has talked to, they have been open to the idea.

“The feedback’s been obviously pretty positive,” he said.

Groups right now are limited in how to get their names out across campus, and Krupicka said this would be a good opportunity for that.

“This would be a great alternative source of advertising,” he said.

Krupicka said this opportunity is a positive one that GSB took advantage of to help students. He said the Memorial Union would have eventually found funding for the sign, but GSB took advantage of funding it for students.

“[This is] a good example of GSB being active in working for students,” he said.

The $30,000 that GSB will be covering will go toward the electronic portion of the sign. Reynolds said the sign’s old electronic technology is not made any more, so the new sign will have LED technology.

If GSB were not to pass this agreement, Reynolds said the project would probably be put on hold for a few years while the Memorial Union tried to find other means to pay for the sign.

If GSB were to approve the agreement, it will speed up the process of getting the sign functioning.

“I’m thrilled GSB is interested in funding,” he said.

Time will be allotted to different groups as well as used at the discretion of the Memorial Union, Reynolds said. The old sign had an unofficial agreement to give time to student groups, but this would make it official.