Minnesota Regent Chooses Board Post Over $80K Job

A regent of the University of Minnesota -- faced with a potential conflict of interest -- has opted to keep his position on the board and relinquish an $80,000-a-year job at the university's public policy school, The Star-Tribune of Minneapolis reported. Steve Sviggum, a former legislative leader in the state, joined the university's Board of Regents last month, soon after he took a post as a legislative fellow at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs. The dual posts drew charges of a possible conflict of interest for Sviggum, who disputed the existence of a conflict but said his service to the university as a regent outweighed his interest in the job.