After only five minutes of discussion, the General Assembly passed the bill detailing the student government budget for next year.
The Associated Students of the University of Utah plans to receive $1.2 million in student fees next year, which will fund the many projects and areas ASUU oversees including the Presenter’s Office, child care and the budgets and compensation for Executive Cabinet members.
As the last item of business in a meeting that had already lasted more than three hours, the budget encountered few questions and no debate from the Assembly members.
“I didn’t question it a whole lot because I had a chance to look at it before hand,” said Representative Aaron Titus, architecture. “I have gone over it. It’s impossible for me to understand every single line item.”
The budget included funding increases for child care, the Bennion Community Service Center and the tutoring center. K-UTE, the U student radio station located at AM 1620 lost $12,000 through the budgeting process, however.
The station no longer has a provision in Redbook guaranteeing it 2 percent of all student fees collected for ASUU, after the Student Senate passed a bill last Thursday striking that provision.
The Assembly still wishes to see the station funded, however, and passed a resolution asking the Board of Trustees to re-allocate a student fee to the station. The Assembly-passed resolution asks for the fee to range from 5 to 50 cents, but the Senate passed resolution asks the Board of Trustees to re allocate between 29 cents or $1 from each student to the radio station.
“I think that K-UTE is a good organization and the students are willing to pay for it,” said Representative Jessika Heaton, science, who last month sponsored the bill to remove K-UTE’s guarantee from student government policy. “I do think we should show K-UTE we still support them.”
In the same meeting, the Assembly passed a bill appropriating $8,200 to update the ASUU network server that is now four years old. This is the second time this year the student legislature has voted to appropriate money for ASUU’s technology. In October both bodies passed a resolution to spend $5,949 for computer equipment.
The Assembly also created a policy making truth in funding a permanent ASUU policy. This policy asks that the finance board chairman publicize the budgets of each ASUU Executive Cabinet member.
According to the provision, the information must become public no later than two weeks before the end of Spring Semester. The bill also insists that cabinet members provide a narrative explaining how they spent the funds and the accomplishments of the board. This was a platform issue the current administration promoted when running for office last spring.
The financial policies and procedures also gained a new clause through Assembly voting, making the funding of the tutoring center an automatic part of ASUU budgeting. The tutoring center will receive 3 percent of all student fees ASUU receives, joining the Senate contingency fund, child care and the Presenter’s Office as organizations that instantly receive a percentage of the money ASUU collects.
Another bill the Assembly passed sets up an account for the college student councils to receive funds. The budget approved by the Senate and Assembly includes $3,200 for the 16 college student councils.