Funding for free campus movies, television programming and concerts was a top priority in the Residence Halls Association’s, or RHA’s, fall semester budget approved Wednesday.
RHA is an on-campus student government group that represents all students living in residence halls.
The semester’s budget totals $472,848, which will fund the various services the group offers to students free of charge, organization officials said. RHA is funded by a $25 tax collected each semester from students living in residence halls, who have the option of applying for a refund of that tax from the organization. This semester’s tax collection totaled $367,050. Any money not spent by the group during previous semesters is carried over and added to the next semester’s budget, said Keith Mika, RHA’s chief financial officer.
Carryover from the summer and spring semesters totaled $105,798.84. Melissa Hackett, RHA’s director of public relations and advertising, said the carryover also results from profits from popular concerts and staying under budget.
“Our carryover comes from spending less than anticipated on materials needed for improving services and also from money we bring in from concerts and special events,” she said.
RHA president Emma Perot said more money was allocated to certain areas of RHA, such as RHA TV and Campus Center, which shows movies free of charge to MSU students.
“Some areas require more money than others simply due to the nature of the service,” she said.
Aside from expenses RHA is required to set aside by internal law, special events were allocated the most money, with artist fees and production costs budgeted for up to $115,000. Campus Center was allocated $59,004 and RHA TV was budgeted for $35,750. Perot said costs associated with paying movie royalties and concessions cause the two to require more allocation than other areas of RHA.
Bylaw expenses include payroll for the executive board and a reserve fund for any unforeseen expenses.
The allocation for bylaw expenses, or expenses RHA must reserve by internal law, totaled $149,718.
“I am very happy with the budget that passed on Wednesday night,” she said. “Now that the budget is passed, we will be able to better serve our constituents by providing funding for hall governments and caucuses.”
Mika, whose job includes balancing and managing RHA’s budget and approving spending by the executive board, said the budget is similar to previous RHA budgets, particularly during the previous school year.
“In fact, our beginning balances each semester have been within a few thousand dollars of each other,” he said.
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