ASUCLA to abolish waiver pool policy

The Associated Students of UCLA is tidying up its account book
by offering a “house package” that will provide
services for student groups holding events in Ackerman Union and
Kerckhoff Hall.

With the change, student groups will no longer have to work
within a financial cap when they apply for the waiver pool this
year. Instead, they will be given a specific number of ASUCLA staff
members for setting up and maintaining security for events held in
locations run by the association.

ASUCLA established the waiver pool policy in 1973 to encourage
student programming in the union by providing free usage of its
facilities. Registered student groups can apply to the waiver pool
to cover any facility-related expenses incurred from organizing
events.

Student Union Director Jerry Mann said student groups using
outside services might be affected by the change because, with few
exceptions, those expenses will not be covered. However, the house
package will provide all the equipment necessary for a typical
event, he added.

“The change would actually get us closer to the original
goal of the waiver pool, which is to augment our facilities “¦
The Basic House Package would ensure that at least at the basic
level, events can go on,” he said.

Currently the association sets a cap on the amount of money
student groups can draw from its waiver pool to cover the costs for
using its venues, which include rooms in Ackerman Union and
Kerckhoff Hall as well as Bruin Plaza and the Charles E. Young
Grand Salon.

Because this policy allows groups to use outside vendors to
provide services up to a given capped amount, ASUCLA often has to
delay its own accounting process while waiting for billing from the
vendors.

Fears of negative financial impact from imposing the new
guideline were cast aside as an analysis of expenses from last
year’s events showed that $375 more would have been available
in the overall pool for student groups if the new policy had been
applied.

In addition to simplifying the accounting process, the new
policy will allow student groups to keep the security and other
staff members included in the package for the length of the events.
Groups would not be charged extra for keeping the staff if their
events last longer than the stipulated time, Mann said.

The revised guideline would also eliminate the distinction
between student government-affiliated groups and other student
groups.

Current policy gives more money to groups in the first category.
With the change, all registered student groups will receive the
same house packages for their events.

Changes in the waiver pool guideline were introduced and
approved at the last ASUCLA services and enterprises committee
meeting. The association will be distributing the packet of
information on the new guideline at the resource fair for student
groups in November, said Student Union division manager Karen
Noh.

Some student organizations such as Campus Events, which
regularly uses Ackerman Grand Ballroom for showing films, said they
would have to examine the revised policy in more detail before they
can comment.

Members of other groups said the changes will not have much
effect on how their groups organize events.

“While we do appreciate the waiver pool policy provided by
ASUCLA, our main concern has always been not on the cost but on
getting the proper attendance and speakers and successfully putting
up the event,” said Haig Hovsepian, member of the Armenian
Graduate Student Association.

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