University of Wisconsin Interim Chancellor David Ward has indicated he will likely overturn two budget decisions from the Associated Students of Madison segregated fee budget for fiscal year 2012-13.
In a letter to Student Services Finance Committee Chair Sarah Neibart and ASM Student Council Chair Allie Gardner, both of whom approved the segregated fees budget within their own branches, Ward said he is prepared to overturn decisions made regarding the non-allocable budgets for Recreational Sports and Wisconsin Union.
“While we may differ on certain points within the budget, I am encouraged by our previous cooperation to continue to work together to obtain important student services with responsible segregated fees stewardship,” Ward said in the letter to Neibart and Gardner.
Neibart said Ward’s likely decision is not a surprise to her, although she finds it to be unacceptable.
Neibart said she and Ward will meet today, a required step in the budget-approval process so the chancellor cannot go ahead with any proposals without consulting student government again.
“[Wednesday] I will give the chancellor a chance to take back his proposals on the non-allocable budgets, which were completely inappropriate and unacceptable,” she said.
Regarding the Rec Sports budget, Ward said in the letter he intends to accept the budget as it was presented by the group because the group has cooperated with an existing agreement. He also said he intends to support the proposed budget increase for “major building maintenance and repair.”
A zero percent increase in Rec Sports’ budget would require the group to reduce its budget by $245,000 because of an agreement stipulating the group must cover 50 percent of facilities projects, Ward said.
As for the Wisconsin Union budget denial, Ward said the group made no error as it complied with a 2007 agreement signed by ASM and SSFC that addressed how to report to SSFC. He also said without the 3 percent proposed budget increase, the Union would have to reduce its budget by $330,000, which would result in a loss of service to students.
Neibart said for both the Rec Sports and Wisconsin Union budgets, SSFC made its decision mainly because of a lack of transparency and information necessary to make a budget decision.
She said the agreements Ward mentioned in his letter do not have anything to do with the need for transparency as to where proposed funds are going.
Neibart added she has an appeal ready for the Board of Regents if Ward decides to officially overturn the budgets – which she said she believes will happen.
“In no way was what I or SSFC [were] requesting outside of that agreement, so they’re a little off base on that one,” she said. “We just wanted more information. We gave both of them a chance to give us the information and they did not. However, I am confident that the Board of Regents will favor us.”
Neibart said there were more verbal agreements cited by Ward than written documents, and these are not sufficient.
In addition to his proposals for non-allocable budgets, Ward also expressed disagreements with the allocable budgets for the Wisconsin Public Interest Research Group, Movimiento Estudiantil Chican@ de Aztlan and the Student Transportation Board.
In particular, Neibart said his intent to veto a line item in the WISPIRG budget establishing a sunset clause for professional staff funding came as a shock to her and is inappropriate.
For MEChA, Ward said he intends to remove a line item for off campus space rental which was under a sunset clause if the group is able to find on-campus rental space.
Neibart said she did not understand why Ward felt this to be necessary, since MEChA has not yet secured on-campus space and will ultimately need a space.
Regarding the Student Transportation Board budget, Ward said a memorandum of understanding between UW Transportation Services and the board is “imperative within the next month.”
He said the UW Transportation Services’ internal budget will include a lower subsidy from the campus for bus service than is shown in the STB final budget, which reflects “a long-standing plan to reduce the employee burden and to establish a funding model more reflective of the proportionality of ridership.”
STB member Laura Checovich said she found Ward’s word choice of “subsidy” to be insulting, and faculty parking revenues cannot be labeled as such.
