The money spent by Nevada colleges and universities on contract buyouts and settlements ballooned to more than $1.1 million last year, up from roughly $713,000 in 2019 or an increase of more than 54 percent, according to a report presented Thursday during the Board of Regents quarterly meeting.

Attorneys for Hardesty filed paperwork with the Nevada Supreme Court on Thursday formally withdrawing a petition for legal clarity as to whether Nevada’s Constitution prohibits sitting Supreme Court justices from being eligible for another office during the term in which they are elected.

Although applicants for the chancellor position are still considered confidential at this point, Hardesty’s application for the position became public in motions filed by his attorney and attorneys for the higher education system last week seeking an expedited ruling on whether or not a constitutional prohibition on sitting justices taking another office during their term.

UNLV made up for nearly half of all spending by Nevada colleges and universities on buyouts in 2019, shelling out roughly $347,000 on just six buyouts over the last calendar year.