The Veterans and Family Student Association received a starting budget of $6,960 by the Programs Finance Committee Monday night, an amount more than 23 times what is normally given to new student groups. Sen. Steven Wilsey walked out of the meeting before the vote was called.
Before leaving, Wilsey said he would have supported giving the group $3,000 on top of the $300 it had already been given. He agreed that the group was as important to the physical and cultural development of campus as members of the group and committee had said.
Where he parted ways with other members of the committee, he said, was in deciding that $3,300 was “a substantial starting budget most groups don’t have the opportunity to obtain.”
He said the amount was all the committee could give without going over the amount that had been allotted for groups with special circumstances. More than $3,300 for the veterans, Wilsey said, would come out of funds that would otherwise be used to lower the incidental fee next year.
ASUO President Emily McLain asked how the committee’s budget benchmark – the guideline set by the Student Senate in October – would be affected by giving the veterans more money.
Wilsey said that because the Career Center needed less funding from the incidental fee the committee would be spending significantly less than had been anticipated.
“I’m going to advocate that you give more money to this group,” McLain said. She said the PFC had “more wiggle room” than in the past because it started with a higher benchmark and was spending less than expected.
Sen. Nick Meyers asked committee members to raise their hands if they felt comfortable dipping into the money that could lower the incidental fee, and the four who eventually voted for the budget did so.
Meyers then asked the VFSA leaders which of the items in the group’s budget should be given priority so committee members could come up with a compromise.
“None of these events,” Co-Director Shane Addis said after a long pause. “They’re not a joke; they serve a purpose. I don’t know if I could put a priority on any of them. They’re all equally important, honestly. Sorry, I can’t help you.”
Wilsey said his mind had not changed, and chided McLain for encouraging the committee to spend more money.
“I absolutely can’t believe the Executive said that,” Wilsey said “I mean, I can believe it. But to say that you’d be okay with the (the entire benchmark) being spent… you’re talking about allowing us to spend $85,000 more than we’ve already spent?”
He said the fate of the funding of the Student Recreation Center is “still floating out there.” He said the ASUO has “one of the rare circumstances where the i-fee can drop and programs can grow.”
Most new groups would love a $3,000 budget, Wilsey said. But if committee members wanted to push it through, “don’t let me stop you.”
Addis asked Wilsey where the $3,000 came from. “Did you just pull it out of thin air?” he asked.
Wilsey said that the largest portion of programs on campus have a budget between $3,000 and $5,000.
Sen. Nate Gulley defended Wilsey’s reasoning, saying no new group ever received $3,000. “So I wouldn’t characterize that as an arbitrary number,” he said. “I know Steven considers all the groups that come before this body.”
Gulley told PFC members to not “feel hampered” by Senate and concerns about the committee’s benchmark. While he spoke, Wilsey packed his bags and left the table.
Sens. Diego Hernandez and Nick Meyers, as well as PFC members Brandon Culbertson and Tri Vo voted for the budget. Vice chairwoman Mei Li Yu voted against it, and Chairman Jacob Brennan abstained.
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VFSA given additional money for budget
Daily Emerald
February 11, 2008
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