The first Student Government quarterly financial report of the 2010-2011 fiscal year was released last week, and it listed SG executives’ stipend amounts, among other expenditures, such as the SG travel subsidy.
A travel stipend of $1,000 for Sigma Kappa Alpha and Sigma Alpha Mu to attend their national conferences over the summer were listed in the report. Former SG President Andy MacCracken established this SG travel subsidy last year.
“We created a separate travel subsidy,” said SG Comptroller Ed Levandoski. “Last year was the first year [former SG] President MacCracken introduced the travel subsidy, which allowed clubs, greek life and eventually club sports to apply for up to $500 per semester to use transportation outside of AUTO.”
This travel subsidy program has its own funds, with $6,000 set aside in the budget every year to aid organizations on transportation costs to places outside the limits of AUTO.
Much of the report involved expenses concerning SG executive’s stipend pay for their summer work.
These wages were lowered by $1,000 two years ago for Grade A executives, which include those executives who are elected to office, such as SG President Nate Bronstein, according to Levandoski.
The four Grade A executives received $1,250 for their work over the summer.
Over the whole academic year, Grade A executives will receive $3,500.
Grade B members of the SG, including directors of departments such as the Student Union Board and the Kennedy Political Union, received $875 for their work over the summer. Grade B executives will receive a total of $2,500 for the whole academic year, according to Levandoski.
The quarterly report also featured transactions for capital maintenance, a rollover fund that allows the SG to upkeep technology and equipment. The fund started off this year with $8,271.
“As [the computers] get older we usually purchase a couple of Dells every few years to upgrade the old ones,” Levandoski said. “We try to wait three years until we upgrade.”
The computers are then rotated between departments or reformatted. If they cannot be reused, they are properly recycled, Levandoski said.
Additional items bought for the office included a paper shredder, four new computers, a quick scanner and cameras for covering events, Levandoski added.
New Student Orientation was also included in the fiscal report of expenses.
“This year we planned a game night … and then we had a table set up to get drinks, so [the purchases from Safeway on the budget] were to buy drinks and stuff like that for the night,” Levandoski said.
The total accounted for six trips to Safeway, totaling $350.13.
Levandoski pointed out that the reports will only show expenses that have been processed by Student Activities.
These expenses will be shown on the next financial report, which can be expected sometime in mid-November.
“The point of the AUSG quarterly reports is to inform students of how SG finances are being used,” Levandoski said. “It’s the students’ fees, and we need to be as open as possible about how they are being spent.”
amooney@theeagleonline.com
