Surplus Senate funds illustrate excessive fee
Our View
Issue date: 10/18/07 Section: Opinions
It's not often we grumble about a budget surplus, but when it's our money being held hostage, we start complaining.
Before we explain why the Student Governance Fee vexes us so, let's make something clear. We reviewed the senate budget appropriations for the fiscal year 2008, and we can't help but be pleasantly surprised that we found only a handful of allocations with which we disagreed.
We're glad to see the Bike Co-op on track to receive funds and that senate has committed to support environmentally conscious and practical initiatives (such as providing free recycling bins to students). Senate has continued its tradition of budgeting funds for Educator of the Year and for an assortment of scholarships. It even created a new committee to address student concerns about the budget, headed up by senator senior Greg Wisa.
The Budget Review Committee has been discussing ways to reduce the amount of rollover funds in the senate budget. Herein lies the problem.
Senate consistently does not spend nearly as much as what it takes in via the Student Governance Fee, which is assessed each year to the tune of $4 per student. Senate gets its normal yearly income from this tax of more than $22,000, but - as in the case of 2006-07 - it doesn't actually spend the money it appropriates.
When we compare the actual money spent last year by senate with the amount that was budgeted, we find a bit of a disparity. A looming $11,000 disparity - the rollover fund amounted to $11,890.02 of unspent student money as of early October 2007.
Although it might seem like a good thing that senate is flush with cash to fund student projects, senate can't seem to unload the surplus. It has more than $10,000 left in its account from year to year. Even senate treasurer sophomore Philip Gilmor says it's common for senate to have money left over.
Gilmor should be commended for preparing an accurate and detailed budget for this fiscal year. But his response to the Index's question about the rollover fund (see story, page 1) is somewhat misleading.
Before we explain why the Student Governance Fee vexes us so, let's make something clear. We reviewed the senate budget appropriations for the fiscal year 2008, and we can't help but be pleasantly surprised that we found only a handful of allocations with which we disagreed.
We're glad to see the Bike Co-op on track to receive funds and that senate has committed to support environmentally conscious and practical initiatives (such as providing free recycling bins to students). Senate has continued its tradition of budgeting funds for Educator of the Year and for an assortment of scholarships. It even created a new committee to address student concerns about the budget, headed up by senator senior Greg Wisa.
The Budget Review Committee has been discussing ways to reduce the amount of rollover funds in the senate budget. Herein lies the problem.
Senate consistently does not spend nearly as much as what it takes in via the Student Governance Fee, which is assessed each year to the tune of $4 per student. Senate gets its normal yearly income from this tax of more than $22,000, but - as in the case of 2006-07 - it doesn't actually spend the money it appropriates.
When we compare the actual money spent last year by senate with the amount that was budgeted, we find a bit of a disparity. A looming $11,000 disparity - the rollover fund amounted to $11,890.02 of unspent student money as of early October 2007.
Although it might seem like a good thing that senate is flush with cash to fund student projects, senate can't seem to unload the surplus. It has more than $10,000 left in its account from year to year. Even senate treasurer sophomore Philip Gilmor says it's common for senate to have money left over.
Gilmor should be commended for preparing an accurate and detailed budget for this fiscal year. But his response to the Index's question about the rollover fund (see story, page 1) is somewhat misleading.
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