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Club president accuses ASUA of improper funding

As campus clubs continue to ask for additional funding from the ASUA Appropriations Board, some students have questioned the validity of its appropriation policy and actions.

In a similar situation that has made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court, students from the University of Wisconsin at Madison have issued a complaint about club funding stemming from a mandatory student fee.

A student at Wisconsin objected to a mandatory fee that supports all student clubs, saying that he shouldn't be forced to pay for those with political beliefs he opposes.

Unlike Wisconsin, club funding at the University of Arizona is based on revenue from the U of A Bookstore. While the Supreme Court's decision will not directly affect University of Arizona clubs, students have raised issues surrounding the improper allocation of student dollars.

Seth Frantzman, president of the UA College Republicans, voiced his concern in an e-mail interview on Tuesday.

"Some clubs get more funding than others because of how much ASUA senators like them. Funny clubs like that corn dog club (Corndog Appreciation Society) get funding because they're harmless and not controversial," he stated. "Clubs like Camp Wildcat or SAS get slashed mostly due to a dis-like (sic) by someone in ASUA. They (ASUA) just try to shoot down clubs, especially those that they don't like."

Dalila Bothwell, one of eight members who preside over the Appropriations Board, said she and her fellow board members do not allow their personal bias to enter their decisions.

"Each member of the Appropriations Board has an option to abstain from voting," she said. "People (board members) have abstained from voting, and the past records can prove that."

Bothwell said that Frantzman's comments are not representative of herself, nor any of the other members on the board, and that he has never seen the actual ruling process.

"He has never come to an Appropriations Board meeting," she said of Frantzman. "He always sends his representatives. If he has a problem, there are many options that he can choose."

Bothwell also invited Frantzman, or any other interested club members, to bring their complaints and concerns to either the Appropriations Board or the ASUA Senate.

Frantzman said the main issue is that the ASUA Senate and Appropriations Board cannot relate to needy club members because of their vaulted position of power.

"I have always felt that ASUA's problem stems from their elitism regarding their policies," he said.

ASUA President Cisco Aguilar said he was concerned about the allegations raised by Frantzman.

"Each Appropriations Board member is required to follow specific guidelines according to the Constitution and Bylaws," Aguilar stated in an e-mail interview. "It is unfortunate that the students who brought these concerns feel the Appropriations Board is acting in such a manner and I hope that they would address these issues with Executive VP (Ben) Graff as I will take these concerns to him."

According to the ASUA Appropriations Board information Web site, club funding is based on a set of criteria that is designed to appropriately allocate money.

Clubs requesting funding must meet the following criteria: enrichment and growth of the campus community, level of the organization's fundraising activities, size of the organization's membership, community and campus service.

According to the Web site, the Appropriations Board also objectively reviews requests on a case-by-case basis.

Despite ASUA's attempts to keep funding as fair as possible, club presidents have raised questions concerning both the response time of the Appropriations Board as well as the lack of ethical decision making.

Frantzman said yesterday that "a lot of the members on ASUA have never been in a club, much less led a club. Some are in fraternities and sororities, but their situation is much different. Fraternities have a lot of money and don't deal with the same issues that other clubs face."

He said the Appropriations Board is overbearing and the process is a waste of time.

"I feel that the ASUA appropriations is extremely bureaucratic and inefficient," he said. "This isn't the U.N. (United Nations), but they treat it that way. These clubs deserve this funding, and they should not have to feel pressure when asking for it."

Other club representatives said they understand the difficulty in getting funding, especially with the amount of time the application process takes.

"After getting all the paperwork that we needed for our request, we didn't feel that it was worth that much trouble and effort to go through," said Amanda Pietrucha, co-president of the UA Young Democrats. "I guess for the larger amounts (of money), its seems appropriate. It does seem a bit much for the smaller amounts."

Justin Price, president of Camp Wildcat, said while he has no problem with the appropriations process, there are problems with the actual members who sit on the board.

"I have no problem with the process itself," he said. "It seems that they don't give you their full attention though. There is a lot of side conversation going on while clubs are presenting."

Price also said changes in the Appropriations Board decisions have caused difficulties for his club.

"Part of the problem is that it is so inconsistent," he said. "This year things are done one way, and next year they will probably change."

Earlier in the year, Camp Wildcat was denied additional funding because of Appropriations Board members' beliefs that the club was a philanthropic organization. According to state law, public funds cannot be used to fund philanthropic organizations.

Price said while he disagreed with the decision, he understands that the Appropriations Board decision was final and cannot be changed.

"They decided to take a hard-line stance on philanthropic clubs. There's nothing we can do about it," he said.

Other club representatives did not share Frantzman's opinions.

David Knap, president of Ambassadors for Christ for the past two years, said that he has not seen any problems with club funding.

"It seems like we've been treated fairly by the Appropriations Board," he said. "Typically, we fund ourselves."