Special Fee Requests

1. In order for its Special Fee request to be placed on the ballot, a student organization must qualify under one of the following provisions:
   1. Voluntary Student Organizations: organizations which are intended to be (and actually are) primarily composed of student members, require no student to join, are recognized by the University and are either open to all students or open to only those students meeting certain criteria which are established and evaluated in an objective manner by the organization. In order to qualify under this provision, the ultimate constitutional, budgetary, and policy-making authority of the organization must be vested entirely in its student members.

   2. Chartered Organizations: organizations which are intended to be (and actually are) primarily composed of student members, require no student to join, are recognized by the University and are either open to all students or open to only those students meeting certain criteria which are established and evaluated in an objective manner by the organization, but where the ultimate constitutional, budgetary, and policy-making authority are vested in a University office or committee or any body other than its student membership.
      1. Such an organization shall have a Special Fee request placed on the ballot only with the express consent of the Senate. This consent shall take the form of a resolution certifying that, in the opinion of the Senate, the organization and its finances are in fact essentially under the control of students, and shall require for approval a two-thirds vote. At the time that this resolution is approved, the Senate may specify additional criteria under which the Special Fee request is placed on the ballot, which shall be as binding on the organization as is its detailed budget. Approval of this resolution shall only determine the organization's eligibility to receive a Special Fee, and shall be independent of, and in addition to, any action by the Senate actually placing the request on the ballot.

      2. In the event that the constitution, structure, finances, policies, or operations of such an organization is substantially modified, as defined by the Senate, so as to impair student control and/or prevent the Special Fee funds from being used for the purposes for which they were originally intended, the Senate may by a two-thirds vote pass a resolution halting the disbursement of Special Fee funds to that organization. Upon the approval of such a resolution, any and all Special Fee funds already disbursed to the organization shall revert to the Association and shall be placed in the Special Buffer Fund.

   3. The Association and its agencies

2. An agency of the Association shall have its Special Fee request placed on the ballot only with the consent of the Senate. This consent shall only determine the organization's ability to seek a Special Fee, and shall be independent of, and in addition to, any action by the Senate actually placing the request on the ballot.

3. An agency of the Association requesting a Special Fee must be financially independent of the Association proper.

4. If a Special Fee request which has met all Elections Commission deadlines is left off the ballot, then the request may be funded from the Special Buffer Fund by a two-thirds majority of the Senate.