The Student Services Finance Committee heard budget proposals with moderate increases for the Multi-Cultural Student Coalition and the Legal Information Center Thursday night, and approved funding for the Rape Crisis Center and Vets for Vets with minimal cuts.

No cuts were made to the RCC budget request, which was approved unanimously for $43,466.

RCC Executive Director Kelly Anderson said the work they do with students is a critical part of the center.

“We would be hard pressed without support of the SSFC,” Anderson said.

Vets for Vets had a minor budgetary cut — $36 from travel expenses — before their budget was approved for $33,534.

Both decisions were passed with little disagreement.

During an open forum at the start of the meeting, 14 spoke in support of MCSC’s request, including one SSFC member.

UW senior from Malaysia, Ilham Sunhaji, said the MCSC helped her develop organizational skills and leadership.

“I felt like I belonged there, despite my differences,” Sunhaji said.

The MCSC’s proposal and questioning period accounted for the bulk of the meeting. The group requested $482,322, up more than $39,000 from the amount they were allocated one year ago. The majority of the increase, according to executive staff member Roberto Paredes, came from programming expanding from last year’s request.

In MCSC’s proposed budget, costs were lowered from 2003-04 in the areas of staff salary, travel, office supplies and printing. They are asking for 32 percent more moneys in computer software and hardware and programming.

During their lengthy questioning period, SSFC member Barbara Kiernoziak asked MCSC speakers to clarify certain “inconsistencies” between the committee’s and the presenter’s budget proposal documents, which were eventually worked out.

Several other questions to the MCSC presenters regarded a variety of elements of the proposed budget, including computer and software costs, travel expenses and office supplies.

MCSC is a student organization providing several services and programs for students on campus, particularly minorities.

Last year an estimated 50,000 people attended MCSC-sponsored and co-sponsored events, Paredes stated in the presentation.

MCSC’s presentation noted its programming supports university diversity programs such as PLAN 2008 and Chancellor’s Strategic Plan.

The LIC presented a budget of $17,797, which is $4,230 more than they received for the current year. The increased budget results from a desired increase in salary for the center’s co-directors and a new computer, according to UW junior Lisa Valenti-Hein, the LIC office manager.

The LIC provides a source of legal information for students and members of the community.

Valenti-Hein said in the presentation that, among other things, the center provides experience for UW law students, teaches students how to communicate with people who are not college educated, and helps people understand issues they may have with landlords, divorce, crime and traffic law.

At the start of the meeting, two new members of the committee were sworn in and were granted immediate voting privileges.