As the Programs Finance Committee finished approving student group budgets in January, the ASUO Executive began raising some questions about student incidental fees, which support those groups — specifically whether organizations supported by fee money should charge admission for their events.
Although no decisions have been made, in the last couple of weeks the ASUO and the PFC have discussed the possibility of making a new rule for next year that would prohibit student groups from charging full price for events such as culture nights, and only allow them to accept donations.
This idea came from the premise that because students are already paying for student groups through incidental fees, they shouldn’t be required to pay for events put on by those organizations.
The notion of banning ticket sales for events also stemmed from the possibility that groups may sometimes put profits from the events into their fundraising accounts, which is illegal because incidental fees paid in part for the events.
The PFC grants some groups a subsidy, which allows them to charge students a discount rate for events, and the Executive is not concerned about these kinds of charges. But ASUO and PFC members have been worried about situations where students pay the same price as community members, and culture nights have been the primary examples of this.
Student incidental fees can’t be used for events that produce profits for the groups’ personal fundraising accounts, which are separate from funds that come from the fees. Though strict limitations on the use of incidental funds exist, groups can spend fundraising money for almost anything, according to the PFC.
But cultural student groups especially worry that the rule would have a detrimental impact on their ability to organize events, because they use ticket sales to make up for event costs.
Vietnamese Student Association historian Melissa Chun said normally the group’s budget for culture nights is already a lot less than it needs, and ticket sales cover the costs that incidental fees don’t. For example, if a group has $3,000 in incidental fee funds to pay for its event, and ends up spending $5,000, admission fees cover the extra costs.
“It’s ticket sales that breaks us even,” she said.
ASUO President Jay Breslow said that no matter what decision is made, the Executive will ensure that group events won’t suffer.
“We have to balance the legality of student incidental fees with the need to not cripple student groups,” he said.
PFC Chairwoman Mary Elizabeth Madden added that if groups do become required to give students free admission to events, the PFC and the ASUO will take this into account for next year and make sure groups have the money they need.
But some groups find it difficult to believe that there would be any way to function without ticket sales. Shruti Shah, president of the Students of the Indian Subcontinent, said that since this will be SIS’s first year receiving funds, it will need ticket revenue. She mentioned that SIS’s cultural night is expensive to put on because it serves a large quantity of food and requires a lot of promotion costs.
Chun added that although VSA collects its own fundraising money through bake sales and donations from businesses, it’s extremely difficult to make a large amount of money, especially enough to cover culture night costs.
But Breslow emphasized that the ASUO is only looking into the issue because it wants to protect student incidental fees, and it won’t hurt groups in the process.
“We have to find the best way to serve programs and the student body as well,” he said.