The entire budget can be viewed here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?key=0AmpLuhsh1-lQdEtTaEhUU2×2cDhLMFNXVjRvOVM3U1E&output=html

Thanks to the budget committee for all of their hard work!

This year, a slightly higher projected General Fee increase meant that the UA’s budget rose by the same proportion as last year (4.0%) and so the UA was given an extra $74,000 to distribute. The actual distribution is done in a two-step process: the Budget Committee (consisting of Ali Huberlie, UA Treasurer, and UA Members Emerson Brooking and Jon Monfred) issues a recommendation, which is then considered by the entire UA in a lengthy public process that culminates in a Budget Decision Meeting where the UA at large may amend the Budget Committee’s recommendation before a final vote on February 27th.

The budget recommendation is available in an online Google Docs version.

We hope that you provide comments and feedback on this site! This is your chance to have your say on how your $1.9 million is spent! Check below the jump for a summary of key features of this year’s recommendation:

Key features of this year’s Budget Recommendation include:

• Block grant funding for MERT, allowing increased flexibility and freedom from the constraints of SAC.
• Increased flexibility within SPEC–more money in contingency and Fully Planned, allowing SPEC the freedom to find and put on the best events for students.
• An 18.7% decrease in UA Administrative expenses, allowing money to be channeled directly into programming for students, rather than office supplies.
• $1500 in Scholarship monies for the PennCORP pre-orientation program, enabling many students to engage in this valuable community service opportunity.
• A 5.87% increase in funding for SPEC, increasing the amount of programming available for all students on campus.
• A 2.07% increase for the Student Activities Council, allowing students to continue to engage in their all-important student groups.

• Contingency Request: $3585 to SPEC Sound
• Contingency Request: $3750 to the Philomathean Society for Jared Diamond’s Annual Oration thing
• Contingency Request: $295 to Penn Abroad for Exchange Student Orientation Ikea Trip
• Approved the Dining Hall Appreciation Day, allocating $50 from UA Operations
• GJ threw a pen at Grant. GJ has a very good aim.

For more information, the minutes are available here.

• A major increase in SAC funding: an extra $64,000 for student groups (or 7.77% increase from last year!).
• Restructuring Spring Fling finances: accounting changes mean that while Fling is unchanged its true cost is now reported and accounted for; plus, the recommendation includes a little bit extra for Concert talent.
• A major increase in Connaissance Major Speaker Honoraria funding (from $61,000 per semester to $75,000 per semester).
• Restoration of the SPEC Film Speaker Event with $13,000 of funding.
• Some program eliminations:
  • Dolphin email accounts ($4950)
  • SPEC Concerts Small Show Series ($3000)
  • SPEC Connaissance Philomathean Society Annual Oration Co-Sponsorship ($3000)
  • Minority Scholars Weekend ($2250)
  • SPEC Special Events Third Spring Fest ($2000)
  • SPEC Connaissance Haitian Solidarity Week Co-Sponsorship ($1000)
  • Haitian Solidarity Week Co-Sponsorship ($1000)
  • Holocaust Memorial Day Co-Sponsorship ($1000)
  • GUIDE Co-Sponsorship ($1000)
• Standardization of SPEC Jazz and Grooves and SPEC-TRUM Spring Concert with Fall Concerts, involving cutting:
  • $10,550 from SPEC Jazz and Grooves Spring Concert
  • $7,950 from SPEC-TRUM Spring Concert

The final budget is available in a printable version (for legal-size paper!) or an online Google Docs version.

See below the jump for an itemized list of approved amendments. And tell us what you think in the comments!

The ten approved amendments (i.e. changes from the budget recommendation) were:

1. All funding for Ivy Council ($4163) was revoked.
2. The SCUE Research Symposium was granted full funding (total $1950)
3. SCUE Internet, banner hanging, and print toner costs were funded at a total of $272
4. NEC Spring Candidate Packets were cut by $100 and increase NEC student government information fliers were increased by $100
5. NEC Midnight Breakfast food and beverage allocations were increased by $300 (from $2200 to $2500) to reflect the loss of a lucrative catering contract.
6. SPEC Connaissance Spring Non-Annual Co-Sponsorships were increased by $3000 to $15,500
7. MLK Day, Kwanzaa, Cari-Fest, Kappa Scholarship Ball, and La Unidad Latina line items were revoked and placed in SPEC-TRUM Non-Annual Co-Sponsorship, which was thereby increased from $6,000 to $17,300
8. MSA Islam Awareness Week Connaissance Line-Item was increased to $2500 from $2000.
9. The UA Dolphin Server charges were restored to pay for web accounts (but not email), increasing the Dolphin Line-Item to $500 from $0.
10. The Sophomore Class Board was granted an additional $1000, to $13500, to promote a larger and ever-better Sophomore Skimmer.

This year, a low projected General Fee increase meant that the UA’s budget rose by the same proportion as last year (3.7%) and so the UA was given an extra $67,000 to distribute. The actual distribution is done in a two-step process: the Budget Committee (consisting of Sakina Zaidi, UA Treasurer, and UA Members Zac Byer and Ryan Houston) issues a recommendation, which is then considered by the entire UA in a lengthy public process that culminates in a Budget Decision Meeting where the UA at large may amend the Budget Committee’s recommendation before a final vote on February 28th.

The budget recommendation is available in a printable version (for legal-size paper!) or an online Google Docs version.

We hope that you provide comments and feedback on this site! This is your chance to have your say on how your $1.9 million is spent! Check below the jump for a summary of key features of this year’s recommendation:

Key features of this year’s Budget Recommendation include:

• A major increase in SAC funding: an extra $67,100 for student groups (or 8.1% increase from last year!).
• Restructuring Spring Fling finances: accounting changes mean that while Fling is unchanged its true cost is now reported and accounted for; plus, the recommendation includes a little bit extra for Concert talent.
• A major increase in Connaissance Major Speaker Honoraria funding (from $61,000 per semester to $75,000 per semester).
• Restoration of the SPEC Film Speaker Event with $13,000 of funding.
• Some program eliminations:
  • Dolphin Server ($5450)
  • SPEC Concerts Small Show Series ($3000)
  • SPEC Connaissance Philomathean Society Annual Oration Co-Sponsorship ($3000)
  • Minority Scholars Weekend ($2250)
  • SPEC Special Events Third Spring Fest ($2000)
  • SPEC Connaissance Haitian Solidarity Week Co-Sponsorship ($1000)
  • Haitian Solidarity Week Co-Sponsorship ($1000)
  • Holocaust Memorial Day Co-Sponsorship ($1000)
  • GUIDE Co-Sponsorship ($1000)
• Standardization of SPEC Jazz and Grooves and SPEC-TRUM Spring Concert with Fall Concerts, involving cutting:
  • $10,550 from SPEC Jazz and Grooves Spring Concert
  • $7,950 from SPEC-TRUM Spring Concert

Authored by Vinay Rao, Sakina Zaidi, and G.J. Melendez-Torres, the UA also resolved to improve the academic environment for students within testing situations by making a few changes such as ensuring left-handed desks, increased invigilators, adequate desk space, and clear time displays.

Finally, Associate Member Colin Kavanaugh and the Student Life committee is working with the University to prevent identity fraud by promoting the opportunity for students to change their PIN numbers away from the current Social Security Number-based PIN.

Please tell us your thoughts, and check out the full meeting minutes.

Allocation to different branches in the 09-10 Budget

Every year the UA is given around $1.8 million to allocate to the branches of student government for the upcoming year – money that funds Spring Fling, major speakers, Hey Day, Sophomore Skimmer, free New York Times, and, of course, every student group on campus. Our money comes from the Trustees, and is pegged to the General Fee.

This year, of course, the economy ran into a little trouble, but the General Fee went up by 3.9% and so the UA was given an extra $67,000 to distribute. This was important; with budget cutting in every department, students can’t rely on non-student funding sources any more. Plus, the UA Budget Committee and PSG Treasurers found nearly $50,000 in savings from careful cutting of unnecessary and less popular programs.

In the end, our increase and new savings meant that:

• SAC gets another $25,000 boost to student group funding.
• SPEC got more than $28,000 extra for a better Spring Fling concert, SPEC-TRUM concert, and Fall/Spring Major Speakers.
• The UA began funding PennArts and PennGreen, two new and exciting freshman pre-orientation programs.

The full budget is online or in a printer friendly version, as you prefer. For the full low-down on the budget, check after the jump.

The new budget provides for some exciting new programs:

• For the first time PennArts and PennGreen will have institutional funding, ensuring their long-term survival. This is part of the UA’s commitment to the Pre-Orientation program in general: we partly fund every pre-orientation program that Penn offers.
• SCUE, the academic policy branch of the PSG, can launch the next of its acclaimed and influential White Papers thanks to a boost of $6,000.
• The Wine Tasting Preceptorial is back to full funding, thanks to cuts and economies made by the organizers.
• The UA-New York Times Readership Program will be fully funded this year.
• SPEC can launch a new Spring Crafts Fair, following on the success of their Fall fair.
• SPEC-TRUM now has access to a $6,000 discretionary co-sponsorship fund for minority groups with new speaker events in need of funding.
• La Unidad Latina and the Kappa Scholarship Ball are now both funded by SPEC-TRUM for the first time.

Plus, the most successful and popular SPEC events got a funding boost:

• $45,000 extra for the Spring Fling Concert, securing even better talent for next year and keeping the concert in the high-capacity Franklin Field.
• $7,500 extra for Spring Fling itself, to improve the Carnival and general Fling security.
• $8,000 more for SPEC Connaissance major speakers, allowing us to keep high-profile speakers like Madeline Albright and Anderson Cooper coming to campus!
• $6,000 extra for SPEC-TRUM Concert production and talent, ensuring the SPEC-TRUM Concerts will continue to build on their impressive reputation.

Most importantly for many of you, SAC’s budget has increased for the tenth consecutive year, with an extra $25,573 for student groups.

Finally, the Budget Committee was able to find just over $47,000 in savings to pay for these significant budget boosters (unlike another government, we actually balance our budget!). Many of these savings were hard to make, but all were essential to ensure a healthy budget going into the uncertain future:

• $15,000 was saved by cutting the Film Society Speaker event.
• $10,000 was saved by reducing talent costs for both the Fall and Spring Jazz + Grooves shows.
• $5550 was saved by reducing usage of the Dolphin Server (web space for student groups).
• $5200 was saved by cutting SPEC “Philly Week”.
• $3085 was saved by ruthlessly cutting advertising and food costs across all student government budgets.
• $2665 was saved by eliminating the SPEC Special Events Oscars Party.
• $1700 was saved by the NEC reducing their ad purchase for elections.
• $1,525 was saved by reducing hospitality costs in the Spring Fling concert.
• $1,500 was saved by halving the number small shows produced by SPEC Concerts.
• $780 was saved by scaling down SCUE Education Week.

The Budget is prepared by a lengthy process, which involves the UA Budget Committee (consisting of the Treasurer and two upperclassmen UA members elected at the beginning of the year) consulting with all PSG branch Treasurers, then preparing a recommendation that is considered, amended, and ultimately approved by the UA General Body of representatives at the meeting immediately before Spring Break. This year, the Budget Committee’s recommendation was affirmed by the General Body without amendment. For more questions on the budget, contact the Budget Committee at budget@pennua.org.

Do comment below about the final result. Did we cut something we shouldn’t have? Or fund something useless? Let us know! It’s your money – how we spend it is in your hands!