As FUSA continues to pimp pumpkins, bring in Ludacris, and create street signs, one question often comes to mind: Who foots the bill?
When mid-April rolls around, FUSA officials gear up for yet another budget approval session. The budget was overseen this year by two-term FUSA Treasury secretary Tim Dee ’08.
“The budget does play a large role in the operations of FUSA, mostly with programming,” said Dee.
A total of 69 percent of the budget is allocated to FUSA event programming.
The $263,500 that the FUSA budget holds is funded by the $85 student fee that is a component of the student tuition.
Dee said that the FUSA budget is negotiated between the incoming FUSA president and the incoming secretary of the treasury, positions now held by Jeff Seiser ’10 and Nicole Barone ’09, respectively.
Seiser said he “needs to sit with the executive board and see where the money has gone.”
He said he has a general understanding about what the money was used for, but wants to see specifics to determine whether any part of the organization should have a greater allocation of funds.
Dee explained the process of budget allocation.
“I look at the expenses of FUSA for the previous three years and look at any other organizations that have been spending their money wisely and could use a budget increase,” said Dee.
In the 2007-2008 budget, FUSA devoted $69,000 to special events, with an additional $33,000 going toward major concerts and $30,000 toward special events – the Dogwoods Dance, Presidential Ball and Siblings Weekend.
Christina Pires ’08, the outgoing executive director of programming, said: “I think the funds were efficiently used. I feel we used [the money] for what the student body wanted.”
Pires said that the programming director should always make sure there are funds left in the budget when the events roll around.
Among several changes from the 2006-07 budget, the 2007-08 budget included a $1,000 hike in all four class council budgets, from $5,500 to $6,500.
The leadership development sector also saw a jump of $4,900, most of which goes to the Camp Jewel leadership retreat.
In a Senate meeting on Sunday, Seiser said he plans to use the leadership retreat as catalyst for next year’s new personnel.
“Camp Jewel is always a fantastic experience,” said Seiser. “I expect as many senators as possible.”
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