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The University of Wisconsin-Madison student government’s financial arm, Student Services Finance Committee, held a “mixer” late Thursday afternoon and invited members of students organizations receiving funding from segregated fees. Pizza was served and root beer pong was played.

Members of the University of Wisconsin student government got together with student organizations for a few rounds of root beer pong and pizza, but debate over some student orgs’ funding requests has already begun.

The Student Services Finance Committee held a mixer with the student groups who will be applying for General Student Services Fund money.

SSFC Chair Matt Manes said it is very important for SSFC to get to know the student groups so when tensions run high during the group’s eligibility hearings they realize people on the committee are just students doing their jobs.

However, there may already be problems the week before the hearings are set to begin.

Manes said Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan did not include part of their end of the year finance report in their application, which would exclude them from funding.

MEChA forgot to attach their narrative report, which explains all of their finances for the past year, Manes said. He added it is the most important part of the finance report.

Manes said it is up to the committee to decide if MEChA will be allowed to submit the report late and still be able to receive funding at their hearing Sept. 16.

MEChA Publicity Coordinator Ismael Cuevas said they finished the narrative portion of their report, but it did not get attached.

He said MEChA has been doing these budgets for over five years so they know the procedures and it was just a mistake.

MEChA turned in their application on August 19, but they were not notified until Thursday about the mistake, over 20 days later, Cuevas said.

Manes said the delay was because SSFC has just started to look over the applications, and there are tons of pages to go through.

“We have to go through between 400 to 500 pages of documents with the application and that’s a lot to find one specific mistake,” Manes said.

SSFC member Jair Alvarez said it would be unfair not to fund MEChA because of a single error and it is in SSFC’s power to determine when extenuating circumstances factor into a group’s application. He added the committee could decide this was the case for MEChA and allow them to turn the form in late.

Alvarez said he was concerned because last year SSFC denied funding to Wunk Sheek and the Campus Women’s Center, and if this year MEChA is denied funding they will have gotten rid of a “marginalized” group every year.

“If I don’t stand up for marginalized groups then who will”? Alvarez said.

Despite the situation, Alvarez said both sides have been cooperative in dealing with the problem.

Cuevas said MEChA will go through the appropriate channels in ASM and its constitution to try to fix the problem.

He added he hoped they could fix the situation and make sure they received funding.

“I don’t feel it’s a big deal, there were human errors on both sides,” Cuevas said.