By: Joseph Basco & Greg Parlier, News Editor & Editor In Chief

The SG Budget Allocations Committee met for approximately six hours Feb. 3 to approve the budget funded by the Activity and Service fee for the 2012-2013 school year.

Agencies such as the Intercultural Center for PEACE and Osprey Productions submitted and presented budget proposals to SG in January.

SG Treasurer Billy Namen created recommended budgets for each agency and presented the modified amounts to the B&A committee for the majority of the meeting.

“The committee really took to heart the hard work I put into it,” Namen said.

Namen said he spent two months researching agencies’ past budget reports and their progress through the current school year. He said it is important to do research beforehand because it would not be fair to agencies if he did not do so.

SG Senate President Carlo Fassi said he was very satisfied with the budget meeting and Namen’s work.

“Billy Namen proposed an exceptional budget,” Fassi said. “So when it came to proposing a budget to the committee, he knew where he needed to make his cuts. It was done effectively.”

Fassi will hold an open forum Feb. 8 from noon to 2 p.m. for agencies to voice their concerns with the recommended budget amounts. The budget’s next step will be a series of approvals.

The budget will be pending approval from senate at the Feb. 13 senate meeting. The budget will then be passed to Student Body President Matt Brockelman, who could either approve or reject it. He will then pass the budget to Student Affairs Vice President Dr. Mauricio Gonzales. If he passes it, the budget will reach the final party in the approval process, UNF President John Delaney. If Delaney does not sign or reject the budget within 15 days, it will count as an approval from him.

Most agencies did not receive the amount they requested, although few lost substantial amounts. Only three out of 31 agencies received more money than they proposed. Special Requests, Salary Reserves and the International Center were the three agencies to gain some extra money for the upcoming year.

Some of the more substantial changes occurred in the Student Union’s operating expenses. The allocation for repairs and maintenance increased $10,000 from last year, to $35,000. Although the agency requested $6,000 for printing and reproduction, Namen allocated $4,500 for the upcoming year.

Another decrease was Osprey Production’s operating expense for Spinnaker ads. Last year OP received $10,000 for Spinnaker ads. This year they received no money.

The Student Wellness Center, which is scheduled to open this summer, received the biggest decrease from last year to this year. SG allocated $224,000 for athletic equipment last year. This year, the allocation is $30,000, a decrease of $194,000.

These are the current B&A committee approved budget numbers:

Lindsay Montgomery contributed to this report. 

Email Greg Parlier and Joseph Basco at news@unfspinnaker.com.