ASM increases original SSFC funds
By Matthew Dolbey
Campus Editor
The Associated Students of Madison voted to pass a slightly increased internal budget during a Thursday night meeting.
Only two areas of the internal budget were affected after the Student Council meeting, which increased the allocation recommendations of the Student Services Finance Committee. SSFC approved the 2004-05 ASM internal budget Monday.
ASM allocated an additional $1,000 to its travel expenditures for the Vote 2004 Coalition, bringing the group’s total funding level to $2,000.
The Council also approved an increase in funding for each of six diversity-liaison positions, one of which is new. These six positions are paid for by allocable segregated fees, as is the entire ASM internal budget. Currently, five students serve as diversity liaisons to the student council.
These liaisons are responsible for representing the views of student constituencies deemed traditionally underrepresented in student government. Both the council and SSFC approved funding for a sixth liaison to represent handicapped students. This is in addition to the current liaisons now paid by ASM to represent students of color, LGBT students, female students, female students of color and LGBT students of color, respectively.
Student Council changed the hours of the liaison positions to 15 hours a week for 28 weeks, compared to the 12 hours a week on a 33-week schedule that SSFC thought appropriate. This effectively increased each position $198 a year and added slightly less than $1,200 to the entire budget.
The budget now amounts to a greater sum than originally requested by the student government, totaling slightly less than $2,000.
The total budget that supplies the many student services that ASM provides and the money to run ASM’s day-to-day operations is now set at approximately $659,000.
The Student Council approval was the last step of student influence before the ASM budget arrives at Chancellor Wiley’s desk for approval. After Wiley’s decision, the budget moves onto to final approval by the UW Board of Regents.