In an Undergraduate Student Government senate open forum session that spanned over two hours, representatives from more than 10 Recognized Student Organizations voiced concerns over a delayed RSO recognition. 

After the discussion, the senate unanimously approved Senate Bill 144-07, which amended the USG Funding Department Guidelines to accommodate the delays. 

The amendment will allow for an “accelerated funding timeline” for RSOs that are not yet approved by USC’s Office of Campus Activities if they apply for USG funding before getting approved. If an individual applies for funding on behalf of an RSO, they will be banned from receiving funding for the fall semester, USG chief financial officer Chisom Obioha said during a presentation.

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During the open forum, RSO representatives aired their grievances about the process.

“There is a complete lack of communication and transparency [about the RSO approval process] … it is patronizing, it is condescending and it is very frustrating,” said Orion Dennin, the external vice president of USC’s chapter of Delta Phi Epsilon.

Due to being unable to access funds or a space to meet, RSOs have been forced to delay projects or take matters into their own hands.

“I can’t get a room. I can’t access my credit union account. I am paying for our events right now out of my own damn pocket,” said Duncan Law, the president of USC’s Political Union. “I have a part-time job, and I am barely, barely holding on with this right now.”

While Diana Zarate, the program coordinator for USC Campus Activities, was present at the meeting, she said she does not work with the RSO team. Zarate said she was taking notes on students’ questions and would present them to Campus Activities after the meeting.

“I am just very confused by why [at] the senate meeting that was explicitly designated for RSO recognition, the professional staff that were in charge of RSO recognition decided not to show up,” senator Brandon Tavakoli said during open forum. “Unless they are recognizing RSOs at this moment, they should be here.”

USG vice president Brianna Sánchez said that USC’s Office of Student Life told her the Spring Involvement Fair would run as normal, unlike this Fall’s, and that the process of RSO registration would begin earlier to prevent the issue returning.

The senate also approved Karim Ayoub, a sophomore majoring in applied and computational mathematics, as USG’s advocacy liaison to the Middle Eastern North African Student Assembly. SB 144-06, which gave the entirety of USG Nov. 5 off for the 2024 United States General Election, was also approved unanimously. 

Reports from USG chief diversity officer Yasmeen ElFarra and senate speaker Diana Carpio and a presentation from senator Heydy Vasquez were not heard.

Campus-wide voting for two USG senate seats up for special election begins Wednesday at 9 a.m. and ends Thursday at 11:59 p.m.