The ASUO will vote this week on the returned proposal of the Athletics and Contracts Finance Committee, after finding more than $80,000 in excess funds from within the Lane Transit District contract that would have funded bus service for the five percent of University students taking online classes or studying at satellite campuses.
The returned budget still includes no money for Oregon Student Public Interest Research Group, and the ACFC will not consider funding negotiations until students are able to opt out of supporting the group financially, Sen. Ian Fielding — vice chair of the committee — said.
Fielding also said there was a special Senate meeting scheduled tonight to vote on the budget.
ASUO President Amelie Rousseau vetoed the original ACFC budget proposed by the committee because it didn’t include OSPIRG funding. After her veto was not overturned by Senate at the end of last term, she promised to work with the ACFC to find additional money in one of the other ACFC contracts.
Fielding and Rousseau’s examination resulted in the committee finding unnecessary money going to LTD, and the ASUO was able to successfully negotiate $80,000 away from the bus service contract.
The proposal the ACFC voted on didn’t include OSPIRG funding because of the opt-out issue, but also because members wanted to maintain a current service level increase for athletics and some increased funding to Sexual Assault Support Services.
The executive’s proposal was to give a large majority of the recovered funds from LTD to the OSPIRG contract and a small portion to SASS.
“I can’t speak to how Senate will vote; I know the executive will continue to advocate for the most services possible,” Rousseau said.
The “most services possible” means the more-than-$80,000 would fully go to OSPIRG; the $45,000 prior request from OSPIRG was a compromise that would pay for the organization at the chapter and state levels. The $80,000 would also pay for some advocacy and make up a part of the executive director’s paycheck.
Rousseau said the executive made their pitch and will leave it up to Senate to decide on the next step.
“I think we made it really clear what our priorities were,” Rousseau said. “We’ll see what Senate decides to support.”
The special meeting is scheduled for tonight at 9 p.m. in 112 Willamette, and a budget must be finalized by Thursday, March 31.
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ASUO vote looms for revised ACFC proposal
Daily Emerald
March 27, 2011
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