Spring formal planning committee (SFPC) chair, Senator Roz Foster '05, brought the spring formal budget to the budgetary committee (BC) four weeks ago, but the BC, and later the AAS, tabled the issue. Senators voted to take the $14,805 recommendation off the table although they lacked a contract for the band and a price estimate for refreshments. The senate only voted to allocate $14,305, which must be approved in the referendum.
After acknowledging that the formal is a valuable event for the student body, Treasurer Paris Wallace '04 expressed frustration with the vague budget.
"When this request was submitted, a specific request [for more exact estimates and plans] was made, and it doesn't seem like anything's been done," he said. "All of the numbers were based on last [year's formal], which was a complete debacle. We have nothing but promises that this will get done," Wallace said, referring to the controversy surrounding the funding of last year's formal.
Other senators stressed the formal's uniquely large attendance rates to justify allocating money without having confirmed contracts or price quotes.
"This is not your ordinary event," said Senator Lincoln Mayer '04. "There are some risks involved and I think they're worth it. [The formal] brought three-fourths of the student body under one roof."
Eric Osborne '04, who chaired the SFPC two years ago, announced that the Student Programming Advisory Board (SPAB) is willing to help with the planning for this year's formal by working with Foster.
"SPAB would like to effectively take on the formal to make sure this event occurs. This means that the most competent programming people on this campus are working to put this on," he said. "With programming a large event, things change at the last minute. You need to have flexibility."
Senator Ethan Davis '05 worried that the cost of the band, which was unspecified, could differ from the amount in the budget. "What if the band costs more?" he asked. "Will you have room in your budget to spend more?"
Foster explained that she would direct the College's booking agent to find a band that would fit within her budget if the band she is currently considering is unavailable or too expensive.
Senator Mihailis Diamantis '04 reminded senators that even if they voted in favor of the allocation, the student body would still need to approve the recommendation. "An approval here just means we're allowing the students to have their voice," he said.
Senators voted 18-7 to approve the recommendation of $14,305, sending it to referendum. Students will vote to allocate the specified amount or to allocate $0. The itemized budget will be available at the online voting site.
Robert Godzeno '06, treasurer of the Amherst Christian Fellowship (ACF), requested that senators amend the BC recommendations to allocate $348.20 to pay the airfare for Yolanda Lehman, a speaker ACF hosted at their Friday Night Fellowship on Feb. 6.
Wallace explained to the senate that the funding was denied because the event had already occurred; the BC has a policy of funding only future programming.
Wallace explained this was not the first time ACF requested funding after an event. "Last semester, ACF came in for a couple of events-at least two-after the fact and we told them that they needed to come in earlier."
He added that the BC did not allocate airfare for Lehman in the initial club budget because ACF is hosting many other speakers this semester. Godzeno explained that ACF recently underwent e-board changes, limiting his ability to request funding on time. The senate voted to allocate $348.20 to ACF for the airfare.
Senator Matt Vanneman '06 proposed three amendments. "I'm moving to get rid of speech night because no one cares. I felt really bad for the candidates who spent ... time writing their speeches [because nearly no one came]," he said. "Students would still have to write 100-word statements to be published in The Amherst Student."
Other senators disagreed, believing that speech night was an important event. "Writing my speech got me convinced that I was [making] the right choice [by running for office]," said Senator Levan Moulton '07. "Getting rid of it would make the election lose credibility." The speech night abolition amendment failed.
The amendment banning run-offs also failed, while the amendment that would eliminate the mandatory voting booths passed. "We can't make voting booths available in Valentine," said Vanneman. "The computers were so old that they could not hold a charge."
A run-off election for two senior senator seats will be held online tomorrow. The Student Interest Survey, on which students can indicate the types of campus organizations they find most valuable, will also be on tomorrow's ballot. The BC and the senate will use the survey to gauge interest in categories of activities and to allocate funding accordingly.
The senate also voted unanimously to endorse a Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) campaign that addresses the high cost of college textbooks by communicating with textbook companies and advocating boycotts of certain texts.