USG drafts bill to address funding transparency
Amid an ongoing transition between administrations, the Undergraduate Student Government moved to address the lingering issue of transparency in funding for Recognized Student Organizations in Tuesday night’s senate meeting.
Among those present, the main concern was repairing the tense relationship between RSOs and USG. In a Feb. 8 senate meeting, representatives from several RSOs, including Model United Nations, voiced their frustrations about funding transparency, citing the denial of funds due to a lengthy and unclear allocation process.
According to senator William Lee, there is currently no dedicated legislation that requires the Undergraduate Student Government to provide budgetary transparency with RSOs. The work to amend that lack of transparency started in early March, when USG finalized and voted on the omnibus Senate Bill 142-47, which included a small portion on addressing transparency with funding allocations.
The bill’s current transparency clause states that the chief financial officer must divulge how much money is in each funding account, the types of groups, the number that receive money from USG and the events or projects that USG has funded.
The bill to amend the allocations committee guidelines proposed Tuesday would expand on the work the senate began in Bill 142-47, leaving some room for the next administration’s chief financial officer to fill in the details.
“We’re not just [discussing] whether the next chief financial officer wants to make transparency a key issue in their term, we’re saying they have to, and that’s the name of the game,” senator Aidan Feighery said.
Senators presented several solutions, including clearing up funding request timelines, adding reasons for possible funding rejections and clearer guidelines for organizations submitting requests.
“This kind of thing is more about just the overall integrity of [USG],” Feighery said, “making sure that people understand how much is left, who’s getting it and how we’re making those decisions.”
Vice-president-elect Michelle Lu suggested installing a new RSO liaison to help communicate any concerns regarding funding to the rest of USG. Lu also raised concerns about student privacy, saying that students “could be pitted against each other” when they become aware of how much funding each group receives — “causing more chaos.”
Senator Maria Barun emphasized the urgency of passing the transparency bill before the end of the school year.
“We’ve sat here and seen Model UN speak to us, and Model UN wasn’t even the first to do so, because many people come to speak to us about funding,” Barun said. “We have that experience and we understand the weight of what’s going on with this.”