ASEWU finalizes first budget hearing

Amid heated discussions, the ASEWU council held the first reading of the proposed 2010-11 ASEWU fiscal budget Feb. 12, ultimately passing it on to a second reading.

Out of a total $2.28 million requested by all clubs and organizations, the ASEWU finance committee has allocated $1.9 million. 

Clubs and student organizations were expected to submit a budget request to the finance committee in order to receive funding. The request was calculated by adding  clubs refundable and non-refundable expenses together and then subtracting that number from their revenue.

“When the committee began, we set out kind of a priority list of what to fund,” ASEWU Finance Vice President Patrick Spanner said. “We took apart last year’s [budget] and saw where we could be more efficient.”

Some programs were considered to be non-negotiable for budget changes, including contracted items like photo copiers, Eastern event insurance, continuing staff positions, auditors, the Tri-fund and free student planners for dorm students.

The finance committee decided to fund what they felt took priority, Spanner said. Student jobs were among the first things mentioned, as well as homecoming, the free concert series and any events held in the campus mall.

ASEWU has been holding budget hearings and work sessions lately pertaining to the budget and how much to allocate to each club. While some clubs received more than requested, others weren’t allocated any money at all. The Campus Readership Program requested $30,356 and was allocated nothing, as were some other activities.

The Music Ensemble requested $29,550 and were only allocated $17,730. Intramurals club requested a total of $122,652 and ended up receiving $125,872.
Epic Adventures took one of the biggest hits, requesting $203,897.56 but only received $105,024.

A second reading of the budget is scheduled for next Friday during the ASEWU council meeting.  More information can be found by visiting the ASEWU Web site, http://studentweb.ewu.edu/asewu.