The Student Government Association Senate unanimously passed a bill on Thursday, Sept. 2 that reduces the fiscal year eligibility cap for student organizations by 25% and eliminates previously required categories for spending. 

The full list of changes to student organization funding brought by this bill are as follows:

• Fiscal year eligibility cap will reduce from $10,000 to $7,500.
• The individual required categories for spending will be eliminated. 
• Travel funding will have a cap of $500 per traveler per fiscal year.
• Equipment funding will have a cap of $4,999.99 for a single item due to capital expenditure guidelines.
• Cultural food funding will still be capped at $2,000 per fiscal year, but will also have a per-person limit of $15.00 per student.
• Organizations are required to submit a budget with their funding request for committee review.

“We’re making it easier for organizations to get funding, we’re making it more accessible, making it more transparent,” said Sullivan Irvine, the SGA vice president for financial affairs and author of the bill. 

Irvine said the bill will make the student organization funding process easier for the Financial Affairs Committee. The committee meets once per month and reviews every student organization’s request for funding to ensure that the request is fiscally sound. Then, with a representative from The University of Alabama’s Office of Finance, the committee will approve the request and grant funding to student organizations. 

With this new bill and revision to the SGA Code of Laws, student organizations no longer need to request funding through categories, which allows them  to use leftover funds where needed. 

Now, if a student organization requests $3,000 for transportation but only uses $2,000, they can use the leftover funds in another area. “You couldn’t move that money over before, so we’ve taken out categories,” Irvine said. 

The bill  reduces student organizations’ fiscal year eligibility cap from $10,000 to $7,500. The purpose of cutting student organization funds by 25%, according to Irvine, is to better allocate funds to places that need it and to create “a more transparent process.” 

“I promise you, we give out as much money as we’re able to,” SGA Press Secretary Olivia Davis said.