Daily Skiff

Members of the Executive Cabinet celebrated Tuesday after the Student Government Association House of Student Representatives approved the budget for fiscal year 2009-2010, which created a special fund for concerts and performances.

The budget, which totaled $335,000 from student body fees, included $23,000 for the Big Concert Initiative. The initiative is what SGA has contributed to the pool of money to host a concert featuring a popular performing artists like Pat Green, Programming Council Chair Kennedy Stewart said.

The Programming Council received the most money of SGA's four branches, totaling $152,692. That amount is $20,813 less than in the 2008-2009 budget.

Stewart said the money is used to pay for student events like Family Weekend, Homecoming week, Howdy Week and Holidays at TCU.

"We cut the budget because we are trying to make contributions to the Big Concert Initiative," Stewart said.

The funds cut from the Programming Council budget were used entirely for the Big Concert Initiative, Stewart said. Those funds are now listed under the executive branch.

According to the budget, the executive branch received the second largest sum, totaling $148,168.

Student body Vice President Matt Dietrichson said The Big Concert Initiative is an attempt to offer transparency to the funding process for big concert events.

In the 2008-2009 budget, $100,000 in "residual spending" funded artist and production costs. Dietrichson said having a fund specifically for concerts and performances in the 2009-2010 budget would give people a better idea of where the funding comes from.

Figueroa said funds for the Big Concert Initiative will be saved until enough money is raised to put on a big concert event. The big concerts cost around $80,000, he said.

The budget allotted $70,000 of the Executive Board's money to the Activities Funding Board.

Dietrichson said the Activities Funding Board distributes that money to student organizations who apply for it.

Under the budget, the rest of the $335,000 was allocated to the Legislative Branch and the Judicial Branch. The Legislative Branch received $33,890, and the Judicial Branch received $250.

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