The Associated Students, Inc. (ASI) Board of Directors opted unanimously on April 16 to delay the approval of the 2020-2021 ASI Budget until the next board meeting.
Originally, the budget’s two components, the ASI portion and the Facilities and Operation portion, were both scheduled to be voted on for approval during the April 16 meeting.
However, following a series of questions mainly focused on student government spending, the budget’s vote for approval was postponed for one week.
Collins College Senator Lucy Yu and Attorney General Manshaan Singh posed questions concerning funds being used for student government apparel, specifically jackets and T-shirts given to student leaders.
After Singh, a third-year environmental biology student and ASI vice president-elect, suggested spending less on this kind of apparel, Associate Director for Student Government Ashley Joseph said “those numbers can change,” and explained that ultimately the amount spent on any items is dependent on the group’s consensus.
NICOLAS HERNANDEZ | THE POLY POST
Once questioning from the board members ceased, Yu, a third-year hospitality management student and ASI president-elect, motioned for the budget votes to be tabled until the next meeting.
“I think that the board needs more time to look over the budget more in-depth before we either approve or don’t approve this budget,” Yu said. “I think that there are just more questions that we need to ask individually and that, personally, Manshaan and I would like to ask for the administration next year.”
“My questions and concerns were stemming from everything happening with COVID-19 …. Manshaan and I have some plans in store for student government and depending on how (COVID-19) plays out, I just want to make sure that our new board of directors and cabinet have the financial resources to do their job,” Yu said.
Following Yu’s motion, Senator-at-Large Susana Delgadillo, who represents the Inter-Hall Council, seconded the motion, forcing a vote on whether to table the votes until the next meeting.
With no dissent, the votes were successfully postponed until the next meeting.
After the vote to table, Vice President Rachel Hunter, a fourth-year political science student, encouraged board members to use the extra week to review the budget and to come see her if they wished to discuss it further.
“When we meet again next Thursday, nothing may have changed, and that’s OK as long as every single board member is confident in their vote on this document,” Yu said. “That’s all that matters.”
The board will once again meet on Thursday via Zoom to hold a final vote to approve the budget.
The agendas and minutes for the ASI Board of Directors that provide of the meetings can be found at https://asi.cpp.edu/student-government/meetings/board-of-directors/.
