UCLA has about 200 independent groups and each of them could
potentially receive some base funding from the undergraduate
student government, as a result of changes made to the funding
process.
The details will be finalized during Tuesday’s emergency
Undergraduate Students Association Council meeting.
The bylaw change allows any group that signs a
non-discriminatory agreement with the Center for Student
Programming to be eligible to apply for base funding.
Base funding is the funding necessary for a group to survive on
a day-to-day basis and includes items such as phone bills and
supplies.
This change in the funding process is a part of
university’s intent to become compliant with U.S. Supreme
Court rulings, which called for student government funding to be
allocated on a viewpoint neutral basis, said Berky Nelson, director
of the Center for Student Programming.
He added that “viewpoint neutral” could be
interpreted in various ways but to him, it means that an
organization can not be denied funding based solely on its
name.
Since different individuals can make different interpretations
of the phrase, it will be up to student leaders to make the final
decision.
The change was made after several years of debate. Last year a
new draft of guidelines were released from the UC Office of the
President, after which UCLA administration stepped in, compelling
USAC to make changes to its funding policies.
With the new provision comes the debate of another controversial
matter: the date requests for funding should be due.
The current date is set for July 8, and USAC President Allende
Palma/Saracho said it is not efficient for council to push the
deadline since for it to be able to deliberate and have operating
budgets available by August, they need to start now.
Aside from the discussions, it is yet to be decided if the date
will be pushed or not.
“We do realize that since most students are not around on
July 8, that cut-off date is unrealistic,” Nelson said.
As of right now, USAC has taken action to inform the groups
about the possibility of receiving funding.
Palma/Saracho said in order to inform groups of the new change,
there have been e-mails sent to groups through the Center for
Student Programming list.
Tracy Ohara, the budget review director, said she has also been
helping by being available more hours, in case students have
inquiries.
Another way to possibly accommodate the new groups and their
requests is to set aside some funds for groups that could possibly
apply after the school year begins.
Ohara said it is up to council to further discuss the
possibility of pushing the deadline or setting aside money for
groups that might later apply for base funding.
The budget review committee, that reviews the proposals and
recommends allocation to the council, is ready for the increase in
the number of groups that apply for funding and has taken measures
to adapt.
The committee has adjusted the caps regarding the maximum funds
each group can potentially receive for any given item.
Ohara said the caps are based on both the number of groups that
are expected to apply and also the total funds available.
“With the increase in number of groups and decrease in
funds, the maximum allocation dropped to $4,400,” Ohara
added. That number is significantly lower compared to last years
maximum of $8,600.
Ohara explained that in order to lower the cap, there have been
decreases across the board.
In the mean time, Ohara is not worried about the details of how
funds will be allocated.
“If more groups than estimated apply, we will change the
caps again. “¦ We want to make the process fair for
everyone,” she added.
Another way the council might deal with the groups not currently
present to request funding is to try and promote alternative
funding pools.
Palma/Saracho explained that most groups apply mainly for
programming funds and the council should direct them to other
resources available for obtaining money for programming.
He added that the approach of making sure groups are aware of
other available funding options could be more efficient than
focusing efforts on hypothetical scenarios.
Palma/Saracho also explained that contingency funds can be
obtained at any point during the year.
“If we can’t compensate with base budget, we should
over-compensate with programming funds,” he added.
He emphasized that the council will work throughout the year in
order to adapt to the new changes and make the necessary
adjustments.
Despite the changes in the process, there is still no guarantee
that all groups who apply will receive funding.
Nelson said it is important to understand that the funds
available for allocation are finite and that there is not a
“never-ending pot of gold.”