The ASUO Programs Finance Committee approved funding increases to a variety of groups , including the International Student Association, which received an increase of more than $3,000 by a 6-0-1 vote.
The ISA’s budget increased to $23,917, the largest budget approved by the PFC at Tuesday’s meeting.
The ISA hosts a variety of events throughout the school year, including the International Student Introduction, a formal prom dance, and International Night, which Remi Nagata, the director of the ISA, described as the “biggest cultural event on campus.”
Every group that requested a budget increase received one, and the Disability Services Project Fund’s request for the same budget as last year was also granted.
“We are the difference between success and failure,” Disability Services director Steve Pickett said. “We are able to support students and their immediate needs.”
The Disability Services fund provides assistance to the almost 600 students on campus with disability needs, which range from physical handicaps to learning disabilities, according to a handout provided by the organization.
The Student Insurgent, a monthly newspaper, also received a budget increase of nearly $2,000, raising it to $20,296. The paper runs nine issues during the school year and prints a total of 3,000 copies of each issue.
“Funding the paper is really important,” said PFC member Richard Malena.
The PFC in turn approved the newspaper’s budget with a 6-0-1 vote.
The Survival Center, an umbrella group for 10 independent student groups, received a budget increase of more than $1,000, raising the group’s budget to $18,471.
The Survival Center sponsors the monthly bicycle appreciation day and brings progressive speakers to visit the University.
The PFC also approved an emergency fund for $10,000 on a 5-1 vote. The emergency fund is in place to safeguard against a lack of an incidental fee surplus or if the surplus runs out this year. The surplus is used to fund unplanned expenses.
“If there is no surplus this gives us a discretionary fund,” Senator Mike
Filippelli explained to the PFC members. “The fund is for whatever the senate needs to spend money on.”
The Unallocated Reserves fund received a 36 percent increase from last year. Last year, the PFC was forced to cut funding to the emergency fund because the PFC was 7 percent over budget. However, historically the fund has been at the $10,000 mark that the PFC approved for this year.
“I know it’s high, but this is what it should be,” PFC chair Jared Axelrod said.
Axelrod explained the need for the emergency fund by saying, “crazy things can happen.”
In all, the PFC approved $83,834 worth of budgets during the four-hour meeting.