It’s no wonder the Ethos staff listed David Boike as one of the most influential students on campus. As the Government of the Student Body’s finance director, Boike heads the effort to allocate more than $1.5 million in student fees. Those fees are collected each semester, then divided among the hundreds of student organizations that are funded (whether fully or partially) by GSB. That is, at least, how the system normally works.

This year, that money does not technically exist. That’s why the term “deficit spending” has become part of the vocabulary of campus organizations’ treasurers. While the money has not actually been transferred into any accounts, organizations are able to spend money through the campus organizations office, hinging upon the technicality that the money will, at one point, be transferred into the account.

That’s a pretty big headache for organizations, some of which receive only a few hundred dollars each year. But we’re told the money will come one day soon, and that the miscalculations are due to a change in student fees, which are out of the control of GSB — Boike himself couldn’t have predicted the change in how student fees are charged, or this outcome.

This semester, organizations were supposed to submit their proposed budgets to the Finance Committee, and quite a few dropped the ball, even after the deadline was extended. The Drummer, the ISU chapter of Amnesty International, Time For Peace, the Egyptian Student Association and the Korean Student Association have all contacted Boike about missing their deadlines.

The organization on the thinnest ice here is The Drummer, which requires its funding for basic printing costs. Without student fees, students don’t get The Drummer. The other groups request next to nothing as far as funding goes, and Time For Peace has actually functioned without student fees since its formation. Boike has said the groups will most likely be fine, as they can still apply for funds from GSB’s Specialty Allocations, which are reserved for unexpected costs throughout the year.

During a year in which the GSB finance director himself has struggled so much with confusion about student fees, he should be willing to cut the groups a little slack. (Actually, a little more slack, as Boike already extended the deadline for budgets once, then e-mailed treasurers to alert them to the new deadline.) But how can the Finance Committee penalize these organizations if even as they struggle to understand their own budget?

With the confusion swarming around GSB allocations this year, some extra care should be given to at-risk organizations that have failed to meet the Finance Committee’s requirements.

Editorial Board: Cavan Reagan, Amber Billings, Ayrel Clark, Charlie Weaver, Katie List