University organizations will have the opportunity to request a portion of $2 million in student-segregated fees next Oct 30-31 at the budget hearings for the 2003-2004 academic year.
“UW-Eau Claire is very fortunate in that students have a direct say in over $2 million of student fees,” said Nate Otto, director of Student Senate’s finance commission. “We are given a lot of control that students across the country don’t have.”
Otto encourages students to attend the hearings at 3 p.m. in the President’s Room of Davies Center both days next week to see the process.
Each organization will have 20 minutes to present and take questions, Otto said. The organizations will tell the finance commission how much money they would like to have and how they intend to use it. On Nov. 7 and 8, the finance commission will decide how much money it thinks each organization should receive.
The finance commission will write a bill and inform the organizations of how much it thinks they should receive. The organizations will have an opportunity to appeal and the commission will deliberate again to decide if the funding level should change. Finance will have the bill ready for Senate to debate in February, Otto said.
Otto expects Health Services to ask for the largest amount of money, estimating between $750,000 and $800,000. He expects athletics to request the next largest amount, around $350,000 and $400,000.
Last year Health Services was allocated $839,000 and athletics was allocated $469,700.
The organizations requesting money are Artist Series, athletics, Children’s Center, concert dance, forensics, Forum, Health Service, International Activities, International Films, music, NOTA, recreation, The Spectator, Student Radio Initiative, Student Senate general operations, Student Senate University Activities Commission, Student Senate legal services, Theatre, visual arts and WUEC.
With the state economy and UW system budget cuts, Otto said the budget is on everybody’s minds.
“It’s definitely time to tighten the belt when we look at the UW system as a whole,” Otto said. “We have to be very careful allocating this money and we have to be more responsible than ever before.”
