Where does your money go?

Did you know that a student-run committee was responsible for the distribution of over three million dollars that affected student life in a major way this school year? Did you also know that those dollars came from your mandatory Student Activity Fee (SAF) of $113 for the 2005-2006 academic year?

The Joint Finance Committee (JFC) under the executive branch of the Student Government Association (SGA) is the committee whose major responsibility is the budgeting and allocation of the Student Activity Fee.

The JFC is comprised of the vice president of Finance, the graduate treasurer, the undergraduate treasurer and student members appointed by the graduate and undergraduate presidents. The JFC’s duties include creating a set of policies and procedures that act as a guideline for funding student organizations. Most importantly, the JFC is in charge of producing a set of recommendations for the annual SAF budget that gives detailed information on how much money should be allocated to each student organization.

Micah Lucas, a fourth-year Architecture major from Tennessee who served as a committee member last year, chairs the JFC.

“As chair of the Joint Finance Committee, I also try to go out and find areas outside of campus that an organization can receive funding from,” he said.

With only a few days before the release of the upcoming SAF budget for the 2006/2007 fiscal years, Lucas remains very busy. “My typical day includes reading and responding to tons of email about the budget and various bills,” he said. Lucas’ duties also include chartering organizations, working with the budget and meeting with organizations that are requesting funds for review.

Several of Tech’s student organizations receive financial support from the SGA. These organizations are required to submit an application requesting funds and return it by the third week of the fall semester. “The only way to receive funds is to submit a bill or budget at the beginning of the year,” states Lucas. After receiving the applications, the Joint Finance Committee uses a hierarchical system to determine which organizations receive funding. From this, the JFC will then create a recommened budget for the legislative branch concerning the amount of money these organizations can receive. Currently the JFC uses a tier system consisting of three different levels, with Tier I being the organizations with the highest priority, to rank student-based organizations.

The organizations ranked Tier I have first access to the funds from the Student Activity Fees. “These organizations are ranked Tier I because they reach out to each student on campus; the majority of students will utilize these facilities.” These facilities include the Student Center Operations Board and the Campus Recreation Center. According to JFC policies and procedures, these facilities are not required to charge membership fees.

Tier II is the next level of priority student organizations. According to Lucas, these organizations reach out to the second largest amount of students and are open to almost everyone. They have the ability to create funded positions for students and can request for their funds to be rolled over for the next fiscal year. Tier II organizations are DramaTech, graduate SGA, undergraduate SGA, Intramurals, the MOVE Office, the Music Department, ORGT, President’s Council, the Student Center Program Board, Student Publications and WREK radio.

Tier III organizations are given least priority. These organizations are allowed to pay for outside services but cannot create any student-funded positions. “Tier III organizations usually consist of exclusively student-led organizations such as cultural organizations,” Lucas said.

Non-competitive Tier III organizations must have at least $15 dues, whereas competitive ones must have a minimum of $35 dues. An organization is designated as Tier III if it is not considered a Tier I or Tier II organization.

Some student-led associations, such as political and religious organizations, are not eligible to receive funding.

By funding political or religious organizations, Lucas said, Tech would be reflecting the group’s ideas. However, exceptions are made in certain cases.

“Say for instance an organization wants to encourage people to vote. [SGA] may fund a voter registration drive. However, if the political organization plans to influence voters and press their beliefs upon others, then SGA will not fund the event. We cannot support [that] group’s ideas. The events SGA will fund must be non-partisan,” he said.

Additionally, JFC policy states that activities with alcohol present and fraternal or social activities may not receive funding. However, there are some exceptions to this rule.

The organization CultureTech, for instance, was granted funds by SGA this year. CultureTech held a week-long international food festival that celebrated various cultures through the serving of ethnic foods. This event was open to everyone and had a diverse range of cultures represented.

Organizations may also submit bills which request a certain amount of money. These bills should include a specific but concise budget of how the organization plans to spend the money.

The bills are first reviewed by the JFC and then must be presented to both the Undergraduate House of Representatives and the Graduate Student Senate. A representative from the organization is also required to represent the bill in these meetings.

Lucas suggested that an organization can increase its chances of a bill passing by explaining in detail how funds will be used.

“An organization should be ready to present as much background information as possible and be prepared to answer all of the questions that may arise. Be very informed about what you are requesting funding for,” Lucas said.

More details concerning funding limitations can be found in the Policies and Priorities of the Joint Finance Committee publication available through the SGA website.

Basics of the SGA Tier System

After considering requests sent in by student organizations, the Joint Finance Committee draws up a budget which it submits to the two houses for approval. In addition to written policy, the committee bases its budget recommendations on a tier system in which certain organizations are given priority. Money can also allocated later on during the fiscal year if the organizations submit bills to either of the houses.

I: Tier I organizations are given highest priority when preparing the budget. They affect many and provide services to all students on campus. They are not required to charge membership fees. The Student Center Activities Board and the Campus Recreation Center are included in this group.

II: Tier II organizations are given second priority. They have the ability to create funded positions for students. DramaTech, graduate SGA, undergraduate SGA, Intramurals, the MOVE Office, the Music Department, ORGT, President’s Council, the Student Center Programs Board, Student Publications and WREK are included in this group.

III: Tier III organizations are given least priority. These organizations may not create funded positions for students. Tier III organizations which take part in contests must charge member dues of at least $15 to each member while those which do not must charge at least $35. Most student organizations fall into this category.