Discretionary funds shall refer to funds that are used without the official approval by majority of the GSS body.
A budget request shall be a document stating the following:
For events: amount requested, date of the event, whether the event is open to all graduate students, whether the event is a social, educational, or promotional event.
For physical items: Amount requested, date on which the item(s) will be purchased, purpose of the item(s), how the purchase will benefit graduate students.
11.02 Discretionary Funds
Only the Treasurer may use discretionary funds.
The Treasurer may use no more than 10% or $100 (whichever value is less) as discretionary funds within a two-week period.
The Treasurer may not use more than $250 during a calendar month.
Any member of Graduate Student Senate can request to review the Treasurer’s budget forms in the event questions arise on spending practices.
Funding for website development and maintenance will not be included in discretionary spending and must have approval of the budget committee and the body at large.
11.03 Budget Requests
Any use of GSS funds, outside of discretionary funding, must be approved by a majority of the GSS body.
GSS funds cannot be used for funding salaries, programs where academic credit is awarded, conference presentations, political campaigns and/or lobbying
The official request of GSS funds must be through an official budget request form submitted to the Treasurer no later than two weeks prior the next GSS general body meeting.
Upon receiving a budget request, the Treasurer must convene a budget committee meeting within five days.
Budget requests will be considered in the order they are received.
Any budget request that does not follow this process will not be considered.
The Treasurer may ask the person requesting funds to be at the budget committee meeting at their discretion.
Budgets proposed under the first reading clause must still be submitted in accordance with appropriate procedures according to 11.03
11.04 Budget Request Review Process
Budget requests will be reviewed only when the general body is in session
The budget committee shall review all funding requests except for discretionary funding
The budget committee shall review each request to determine: applicability to the graduate student population, appropriateness to the educational mission of Ohio University, and consideration to the public image of Graduate Student Senate, the Graduate College, any involved academic colleges, and Ohio University.
The budget committee reserves the right to contact any collaborative organization involved with funding requests.
The budget committee reserves the right to approve, deny, or request amendments and clarification to a budget request.
Any budget request must pass the budget committee by a simple majority for funding under $250 and by a two-thirds majority for any funding requested above this amount.
The budget committee Chair has twenty-four hours to notify the funding requester of action taken on their request. The funding requester then has twenty-four hours to reply if amendments or clarifications are requested.
The budget committee shall follow up on allocated funding through an audit process. The fund requester has a maximum of 45 days after their funded date indicated by the budget request to submit their receipts. The budget committee will meet within 7 days of receiving the audit form to conduct the audit process. The budget committee can make a recommendation to withdraw funding if audit shows that appropriated funding was not used explicitly as described in the request.
11.05 Conflicts of Interest
If any member of the budget committee is part of a funding request, they must recuse themselves from any deliberation or voting on the budget item in question so as to avoid a conflict of interest.
If the budget committee is unable to reach a quorum due to a conflict of interest, the budget item will automatically go to the general body for consideration. See 11.04(e).
11.06 Budget Appeals Process
The requester has forty-eight hours to file an appeal on a budget decision. The appeal must be emailed to gss@ohio.edu and/or the current Treasurer.
The executive board may determine the merit of the grievance and request one of several actions take place:
The budget committee reconvenes to reconsider the budget request
The budget request is put to the body for a vote, or
The executive board has the right to deny the request.
Denial of a budget request by the executive board or the general body is final.
11.07 Budget on the Whole
The budget committee or executive board can request a budget on the whole meeting during a general body meeting for the following purposes: in response to an appeal, for an emergency funding request, for an item where conflicts of interest arise, and for a contentious budget request.
During budget on the whole, the Chair of the budget committee will preside over the general body meeting until the budget consideration is concluded.
After review and approval by the budget committee, a resolution shall be drafted indicating sponsorship of the funding request by the budget committee.
The requestor of funds shall be notified within twenty-four hours of the results of the budget committee deliberation.
Any budget on the whole resolution must pass by a simple majority for funding under $250 and by a two-thirds majority for any funding requested above this amount.
11.08 Contract Management
Graduate Student Senate has the ability to enter into financial contracts at the body’s discretion. It will also be approved
Contracts must go through the same process and meet the same criteria as a budget request.
Contracts cannot be made that will exceed the current fiscal year’s budget.
Contracts cannot be made for multiple year projects without unanimous consent.
Violations of a contract by any member of the body will result in automatic referral to conduct and discipline (refer to 12.03(a)).
Any contract made under Graduate Student Senate’s name without the consent of the body will result in automatic referral to the conduct and discipline committee (refer to 12.03(a)).
