The Associated Students of Madison’s Student Services Finance Committee heard the transportation budget proposal in a meeting Thursday night, which included a request for increased wages for drivers. The committee also critiqued the proposed new eligibility requirements for General Student Services Fund groups.
University of Wisconsin Transportation Budget
Margaret Bergamini of the UW bus pass program presented the UW Transportation budget for fiscal year 2015.
She said the most important aspect of UW Transportation is the bus system. Students are the largest group of bus users, with 3.2 million rides coming just from riders using student bus passes, she said.
Bergamini also proposed increasing the hourly wage for students employed to hand out the bus passes each year.
GSSF Eligibility
SSFC representatives also expressed concern over the “gray areas” that exist in eligibility requirements for student organizations to receive funding from the General Student Services Fund.
Rep. Devon Maier said the requirements should be more specific, because with the current requirements, basically any organization could receive funding. Comittee members added the requirements should also ensure that applicants have legitimate grounds for requesting funds.
Overall, representatives said aspects of the eligibility requirements should be more well-defined. SSFC will vote on the new requirements at their next meeting on March 10.
Correction: This story incorrectly quoted Bergamini as proposing a wage increase for Metro bus drivers. The story has been updated to reflect this change. We regret the error.
