The Undergraduate Students Association Council is the official student government representing the undergraduate student body at UCLA. Council meetings usually take place every week on Tuesdays at 7 p.m. in Kerckhoff 417 and are open to all students. This week’s meeting occurred on Monday, July 6th. Watch a live stream of the meeting on the USAC Live! YouTube channel.
Agenda
- The undergraduate student council voted unanimously to approve their overhead budget of around $4 million for 2015-16. The administrative overhead budget is used to fund the administration and officers’ stipends. It increased by $40,000 since last year, most notably due to the state’s minimum wage increase that will come into effect on Jan. 1, 2016.
- The council voted unanimously to approve the allocation of $1,106 from the Contingency Programming Fund to student groups that requested funds.
- The council voted unanimously to make changes to the proposed budget, including reducing the Election Board budget by $8,520 for a total of $26,136 and reducing the budget for telephones in Kerckhoff by $1,000 for a total of $12,030.
- The council voted unanimously to redirect $6,000 of the money leftover from reducing the Election Board and telephone budget to the discretionary fund and $3,000 to the Contingency Programming Fund, which student groups can apply to in order to receive money for advertising, graphics and facilities, among other expenses.
- The council voted unanimously to allocate funds from the Student Government Operational Fund to offices that do not receive referendum money. The money will be divided equally among the Offices of the President, Internal Vice President, Transfer Student Representative, General Representatives 1, 2, and 3, Facilities Commission and Financial Services Commission.
Officer Reports
- President Heather Rosen said she met with the UCLA Food Security Work Group last week to approve the allocation of $75,000 it received from the University of California. Rosen said the money will go toward existing food programs, including the Community Programs Office’s Food Closet, a student-run grocery store and a researcher who will use the funds to develop a plan to sustain food security. She said she also met with the National Campus Leadership Council to discuss how student leaders can be better advocates for issues such as financial aid and sexual assault at the federal level.
- External Vice President Zach Helder said he is working to get more students registered to vote and more involved in state and national elections.
- General Representative 2 Aaliya Khan informed the council that tradition meals for Ramadan, a Muslim festival involving long periods of fasting, will be served in the basement of the Student Activities Center. Khan said she is also working with various cultural organizations to make sure they are able to provide mental health resources to their members.
- A representative for Academic Affairs Commission Trent Kajikawa said he is collaborating with student leaders at UC Berkeley to discuss academic and financial issues in the UC and how students can work together to tackle these issues.
Compiled by Rupan Bharanidaran, Bruin reporter.