The Student Senate voted Wednesday night to make it more difficult for student organizations to obtain a piece of the Senate’s contingency fund.
The bill is a result of student organizations requesting large amounts of money on a consistent basis for several years, said Senate Speaker Pro-Tempore and author of the bill Jessica Wainwright.
Student Government Vice President Jason Wesley said the Senate’s contingency, which comes from student fees, is more than $23,200.
Wainwright said the Senate gives the money in its contingency to official organizations registered in the Dean of Students Office who request funds for activities, supplies and trips.
“The bill is not intended to limit the amount of money that an organization can request,” Wainwright said. “Its purpose is to make it a more stringent process for organizations to receive funding for amounts over $1,200.”
Wainwright said the bill does not put a cap on the amount of money available to students through the Senate but instead increases the difficulty of the process. She said the bill is not meant to discourage students from approaching the Senate with requests for funding but rather to encourage them to explore other avenues.
Organizations requesting amounts greater than $1,200 still will be able to receive funding, but the Senate will have to pass the bill by a two-thirds vote instead of a simple majority.
Sen. Jeremy Griggs, who originally co-authored the legislation but removed his name from the byline after the bill did not pass through the Senate Sept. 17, said too many student organizations have been approaching the Senate without attempting to obtain the funding from other places.
Griggs said the Senate’s contingency should be a “last resort” and not a “first source” of funding for student organizations.
During the Sept. 17 meeting, Griggs said the bill would allow the senators to “represent more of the students by spreading out the funds more widely” than they have in previous years.
During the past few years, the Senate frequently has given away large amounts of money to organizations for a variety of uses.
In April 2001, the Senate gave the University chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects $5,390 to help with the cost of patio furniture for a courtyard honoring the professor who started the LSU School of Landscape Architecture.
Griggs, who currently is the longest-standing senator, said this is the largest amount he can remember the Senate distributing.
Student Government Director of Finance Robert Lay said student organizations also can obtain money from the Organizational Relief Fund and Programming Support and Initiative Fund.
Organizations interested in ORF and PSIF money can contact Lay in the SG office at 578-8727.