USAC’s ability to give funds is questionable

EDITORIAL BOARD Editor in
Chief  Timothy Kudo

Managing Editor
 Michael Falcone

Viewpoint Editor
 Cuauhtemoc Ortega

Staff Representatives
 Maegan Carberry
 Edward Chiao
 Kelly Rayburn

Editorial Board Assistants
 Maegan Carberry
 Edward Chiao

  Unsigned editorials represent a majority opinion of
the Daily Bruin Editorial Board. All other columns, letters and
artwork represent the opinions of their authors.   All
submitted material must bear the author’s name, address, telephone
number, registration number, or affiliation with UCLA. Names will
not be withheld except in extreme cases.   The Bruin
complies with the Communication Board’s policy prohibiting the
publication of articles that perpetuate derogatory cultural or
ethnic stereotypes.   When multiple authors submit
material, some names may be kept on file rather than published with
the material. The Bruin reserves the right to edit submitted
material and to determine its placement in the paper. All
submissions become the property of The Bruin. The Communications
Board has a media grievance procedure for resolving complaints
against any of its publications. For a copy of the complete
procedure, contact the Publications office at 118 Kerckhoff Hall.
Daily Bruin 118 Kerckhoff Hall 308 Westwood Plaza Los Angeles, CA
90024 (310) 825-9898

It’s encouraging to see the University of California
Students Association making an effort to return power to students.
The organization is fighting for autonomy from UC Office of the
President oversight in determining how student fees are spent.

It makes sense that students should control the allocation of
student fee spending, especially when dealing with funding requests
from campus student groups. But at UCLA, the Undergraduate Students
Association Council has a questionable history in determining who
gets what fairly.

For years, accusations have been made that USAC favors certain
groups over others ““ namely, the minority political activist
groups the council’s dominant platform Student Empowerment!
members (and their predecessors who constituted Praxis and Students
First!) came from. For example, among this year’s top funding
recipients were the Asian Pacific Coalition, the African Student
Union, MeCHA and Samahang ““ all of whose budgets exceed
$6,000. When members of these organizations get into office, like
Karren Lane, former president of ASU, current USAC president and
Student Empowerment! member, they get to decide who sits on the
Budget Review Committee. This committee in turn decides where the
money goes. This complicates the notion of granting money to
student groups based on a viewpoint-neutral criteria, since,
ironically, people who already have political biases get to
determine the logistics of applying a viewpoint-neutral policy.

Council members may argue that the identity groups who receive
the bulk of USAC funding are the most established with the largest
number of members, but their reasoning also creates a trap in which
new groups with smaller membership can’t break down the door.
They may also reason that the identity groups will be
“educating” the greater university community and that
they are open to the public; but the exclusive nature of the
groups’ ethnic focus is inherently limiting, especially since
most identity-based groups are already stigmatized by the campus as
pursuing narrow agendas.

Student fees should not be used as a vehicle for the sitting
council’s preferred political agenda. According to UC
policies, fees may not be used to support organizations or
activities which are “predominantly political, ideological or
religious” in nature, and the activities must be university
related. These terms are difficult to define and easy to manipulate
““ and it doesn’t get easier by having students who are
predominantly political and ideological decide them.

Given the institutionalized politics of USAC, it is likely
impossible that groups will be funded on a viewpoint-neutral basis.
But university policy requires them to at least try. USAC
represents the entire campus, and should therefore make every
effort to help as many student groups as it can. One way the
council might be able to avoid sticky political, ideological or
religious funding is to focus funding exclusively on group events
that are open to the campus public, like plays, cultural shows and
guest speakers. This would resonate a lot more positively with the
overall student body, who could actually see the product of their
student fees, rather than being perpetually irked for having to pay
for a group’s base operation costs like phone calls,
supplies, conferences and retreats, which no one but members of the
groups cares about.