PHOENIX - For the first time in more than three years, it appears the UA will have its operating budget increased by the state Legislature.

After having that budget cut in 2001 and 2002 and held flat in 2003, both the governor and the state Senate have supported a plan to pump roughly $15 million into the UA.

While budget negotiations will likely drag on until early June, early indications are that the school will receive a sizeable increase in funding.

Gov. Janet Napolitano kicked off the session pledging to push for more money for higher education and made good on that promise when she released her executive budget proposal that called for nearly $8 million to retain key faculty and to cope with enrollment growth at the UA.

Her proposal also set aside $21.9 million for employee pay hikes at the state universities.

Just last week, the Senate released its budget proposal, which nearly mirrored Napolitano's request.

And a year after UA lobbyists secured $440 million to build a research technology park, they found themselves with little to worry about, except making sure legislators took to heart Napolitano's call for more cash.

"This year, there weren't really any big bills that affect the universities," said UA lobbyist Greg Fahey. "The issue beyond anything else has been the budget."

Napolitano has been selling the idea of increased university funding as a long-term investment in Arizona's economy, and until now, legislators have been buying.

While the House of Representatives has vowed to try and trim the governor's budget proposal, moderate Republican lawmakers are expected to block any attempts to pass a budget without increases in funding to the UA.

UA officials initially asked the governor for $64 million more than their current fiscal budget, but her significantly smaller request still earned praise from President Peter Likins.

"I trust this governor, and I trust her commitment to higher education and her belief in the value of investing in the state's universities," Likins told the Wildcat when Napolitano released her budget. "When I look at the numbers ... I am pleased that they reflect our priorities."

Napolitano also flexed her political muscle on a number of university decisions during the session, saying she was worried that the Arizona Board of Regents' decision to increase tuition was pricing the middle class out of higher education and giving initial support for a proposal to base university funding on graduation rates.

While budget negotiations played out throughout the semester, a number of bills also impacted the UA.

One bill, sponsored by Rep. Michele Reagan, R-Scottsdale, pushed to keep bars open more than an hour later.

That bill was later signed into law, and next semester, campus-area bars will be open until 2:30 a.m.

Another bill, sponsored by Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Gilbert, that aimed to institute stricter criminal screening and fingerprinting for UA employees and called for the automatic termination of violent felons, was later withdrawn after regents promised to create their own stricter standards.

The regents unveiled their proposed plan in April, and they continue to work toward implementing it by the fall.

A bill drafted by student lobbyists that asked the state to double the amount of money allocated to a state financial aid trust fund was withdrawn by its sponsors at the request of the students after it became apparent that it lacked the governor's support.

But ultimately, the Legislature had little impact on the UA outside of the budget.

"I don't see anything that really hurt us," Fahey said. "Now it's a matter of finishing the budget without getting hurt."