Council Clippings: UHR approves cricket match broadcast bill
In their weekly meeting on Tuesday night the Undergraduate House of Representatives (UHR) passed eight allocation bills.
The Joint Finance Committee (JFC) chairman Micah Lucas gave his report in which he stated that the JFC had begun to meet with organizations in order to get their budget ready by Spring Break. The bills were then taken up for consideration.
The Ice Hockey Club received $15,794 to help fund purchase of new equipment and jerseys.
The speaker, club president Mike Zaucha, emphasized that the bill was put forward due to budget cuts and that there was not enough money in their account to finish the season.
Questions were raised regarding the lifespan of the jerseys which was approximated at about five years.
Zaucha also pointed out that money for shoulder pads and sticks didn't come from the Student Government Association (SGA).
Lucas proposed a number of amendments that reduced the prices of hockey clothing. He also amended to strike funding for warm-ups and sponsorship patches.
The bill was passed duly including the amendments.
The next bill allocated a total of $3,000 to the Musician's Network for purchase of acoustic tiling that was approved by the fire marshall. It was passed after little debate.
The Spanish Speaking Organization (SSO), which seeks to unify the Spanish-speaking community at Tech, was allocated $2,848.50 for an annual Latin-American film festival in which six movies would be screened over a weekend in mid-March.
Representatives raised questions about the efforts made by the SSO to fundraise and they expressed disappointment at the lack of corporate sponsorship.
After an amendment by Lucas to reduce the price of banners from $50 to $18 each was accepted, the bill was passed.
The African American Student Union (AASU) was allocated $2,382.50 in order to fund the Onyx Ball, which celebrates Black History Month. There was considerable debate about fundraising attempts by the organization.
According to the speaker, the event was sponsored by three other organizations and decoration and catering costs were being met by income from sale of tickets. According to Graduate Student Senate (GSS) coordinator Ryan Bechtel, the GSS had made it mandatory for the AASU to charge a higher ticket price for non-Georgia Tech students. After little debate, the GSS amendment was accepted and the bill was passed.
The iMovieFest was allocated $2,343 in order to fund the 2006 Campus Movie Fest. GSS coordinator Bechtel stated that the bill was passed in the GSS after a line providing $96 for ushers was struck. After the motion to strike this line was passed, the bill was promptly accepted.
The Men's Ultimate Club team was allocated $1,966 for travel expenses and entry fee for two tournaments. After Lucas acknowledged that the bill met JFC policy the bill was passed.
The UHR also allocated $1,500 to a series of clubs including India Club, Pakistan Students Association, Hindu Student Council and Cricket Club to fund the purchase of the India-Pakistan cricket series commercial broadcast license.
According to the speaker, India Club sports coordinator Varun Maniar, 3,000 people on campus passionately watch this match and barely ten percent of those viewers are members of the clubs. In response to criticism about fundraising, a representative pointed out that the details of the broadcast licenses are not known until the very last minute. After little further debate the bill was passed.
The UHR allocated a total of $645 to freShGA as assistance with the cost of Fresh Formal, a gathering of freshman from four other leadership groups: Freshman Advisory Board, Freshman Council, Emerging Leaders and Lambda Delta Rho.
Lucas made an amendment to strike a section which dealt with the purchase of food related materials because it was in conflict with JFC policy. After this amendment was accepted the bill was passed.
