SGB allocations on limited budget

The stock market isn’t the only place that’s feeling the new hard economic times.

Pitt’s… The stock market isn’t the only place that’s feeling the new hard economic times.

Pitt’s Student Government Board has money problems too.

According to Jennifer Kolenda, chair of SGB’s allocations committee, rising costs resulting from the current economy are just one of the factors that have contributed to the tightening of the allocations strings.

“It’s hurting a lot of organizations on campus,” Kolenda said at the SGB meeting Wednesday night. During the meeting allocations recommended that SGB turn down the Indian Subcontinent Association’s request for over $8,000 to bring in performer Anoushka Shankar.

In an interview, Kolenda said that the problems began two fiscal years ago, when the board spent more money than usual, often against the recommendations of the allocations committee. This left SGB with no money to carry over to the next fiscal year. The effect snowballed and there was no holdover money the next year, either.

Then came the 2002-2003 fiscal year.

Kolenda said that, usually, groups request between $600,000 and $700,000 total from SGB, and SGB approves roughly half – around $300,000.

But in spring 2002, groups requested a total of about $1.5 million, and SGB granted $430,000, which, Kolenda said “is pretty much the same ratio.”

So now SGB has to skimp for the rest of the semester, because it has about $100,00 to give out, she said.

According to Kolenda, allocations is trying to cut down on the money it gives out to students, starting with the luxuries.

“We try not to go with the fluff,” she said.

Kolenda said that, in past years, allocations would recommend approving funding for all or most parts of programs, whereas now they could only afford to fund “what’s absolutely necessary for your program to run.”

Allocations committee does not actually approve or deny funding, according to the SGB allocations manual. It makes a recommendation to the board that is then voted on and either approved or denied and sent back to the committee.

Kolenda said that the board two years ago often went against allocations’ recommendations, and even broke rules by approving more money than the organization applied for, which contributed to the extravagant spending and current problems.

She also said that more groups are applying for money – there used to be only 90, now there are more than 100 – and that the cost of programs is going up, thanks to the economy and inflation. Honorariums for speakers – and the fact that groups are seeking more prestigious guests – advertisements, airplane flights and catering were all examples that Kolenda gave of rising costs.

“Things are becoming more expensive to do,” she said.

Kolenda, who is serving her second year as allocations chair and fourth year on the committee, said that it is sometimes hard for boards to turn down requests.

“They get elected by the students and they need to represent their views,” she said. “Past boards have had a huge bleeding heart.”

She added, though, that the current board is aware of the situation and conserving appropriately.

“I think we’ll be fine,” she said.

Kolenda said that the board and allocations have put away money for the spring 2003 term, and that SGB’s budget, which included the traditional Arrival Survival, Pittsburgh Project and lobbying trips funding, was nothing out of the ordinary this year.

She said that, while there had been talk of raising the student activity fee, nothing had even been formally discussed and probably wouldn’t be for a while.

After four weeks, Kolenda said that SGB has received $76,000 in requests and approved $30,000.