The undergraduate student government will have to re-evaluate the way it funds student groups after receiving a surplus projection that was much lower than expected.
At Tuesday’s Undergraduate Student Association Council meeting, officials projected the surplus funds for the year will come in at $50,000. Last year’s funds amounted to more than $380,000.
Although the $50,000 figure is a projected amount, the numbers are expected to be in that vicinity, said Roy Champawat, director of the UCLA Student Union. The final numbers will not be known until the end of the quarter,
Champawat said the difference in surplus is no cause for alarm.
He added that surplus is projected to be significantly less than in previous years because last year’s council effectively used the funds allocated to them.
“It doesn’t mean that something’s wrong, it actually means something is right,” Champawat said. “The rightness is just inconvenient.”
The difference in surplus, however, will significantly affect USAC contingency funds, a source of money that student groups can use to fund any program or event that furthers their mission.
Contingency funds are meant to be a backup, but in recent years, the funds have been seen by student groups as the main source of support, said USAC president Emily Resnick.
Past councils have used less money than they were given and finished with large surpluses for the following year.
Last year’s council, however, made changes in the way it used its yearly funds, leading to less money left over.
They were also informed of surplus funds earlier than usual and were able to more efficiently plan how to use that money for the remainder of their term, Champawat said.
The introduction of funding guidelines to allow student groups to receive money for food at their events has also contributed to the smaller surplus, Champawat said. The change was put in place in response to student concerns over the inefficient use of money by councils, Champawat said.
More than $40,000 was allocated to student groups for food last year.
Another change affecting the surplus dealt with funds unused by student groups. Ronald Arruejo, the USAC finance committee chair, was appointed last spring after the former chair graduated early. One of his first moves was to reallocate money student groups did not use to the general contingency fund, which student groups could apply to receive for the remainder of the year.
He was able to transfer between $20,000 and $25,000 from fall and winter quarter to spring, Arruejo said.
Arruejo said he anticipated surplus would be less than in previous years, but did not foresee how significant the difference would be.
At this week’s meeting, Arruejo recommended an 80 percent reduction to contingency allocations for the rest of the year. Student groups and any of the 13 USAC offices can apply for these allocations, Arruejo said.
Concerned that student groups would not receive sufficient funding for their events with Arruejo’s recommendation, the council instead voted to reduce contingency allocations by only 50 percent, said David Bocarsly, USAC general representative.
The council decided to go against the recommendation because council members were elected to represent the interests of students and they should ensure that student groups receive adequate funding, Bocarsly said.
Council members are working to address the funding issue. They began exploring possible solutions at Tuesday’s meeting.
Changes to funding guidelines, increasing the advertisement of other sources of funding and asking student groups to specify their priorities on funding applications are some of the options the council members discussed.
One proposed change to the funding guidelines is limiting the number of times a student group can apply for contingency funds, Bocarsly said.
Resnick held a funding study group Thursday night to discuss possible solutions to the effects of the difference in surplus on contingency. The group consisted of funding representatives from each office, members of the USAC Finance Committees and other council members.
The purpose of the group was to come up with proposed changes to the guidelines for contingency allocations. The proposals will then be voted on at the USAC meeting next Tuesday.
Arruejo still holds to his initial recommendation, but he said changes will be necessary to fund clubs for the rest of the year under the current allocation procedure.
“If we can accomplish (the changes) before fall quarter ends, we will be able to sustain until May,” Arruejo said.
The finance committee also plans to hold workshops to educate student groups about different sources of funding. Many alternative funding sources are underutilized, said Cynthia Jasso, vice chair of the finance committee.
“It’s a scary issue and we want to make sure it is dealt with in the best way possible,” Resnick said.