The Graduate Student Senate unanimously approved a bill Monday to create a Student Government Joint Allocations Committee, which would decide the allocations of funding for Student Legal Service, the Iowa State Daily and ASSET.

GSS also passed two other bills including a bill in opposition to line item funding for the Student Activity Center and a bill defining the GSS budget for fiscal year 1996-1997.

The bill that was passed amending the Articles of Cooperation between the Government of the Student Body and GSS proposed that Student Legal Services, the Daily and ASSET will be equally funded by graduate students, veterinary medical students and undergraduate students through their student activities fees.

This bill will make funding equal between all three of the student groups, the bill states. About 30 percent of the student government fees is paid by graduate and veterinary medical students, the bill states.

“Graduate students currently have little input into how much money is allocated to these three organizations as compared to their proportion of fees paid to fund these items,” the bill states.

The amendment states that allocation to GSS will be determined before the funding for the three organizations is paid. After GSS had received its allocation of student fees, the two groups will come together to determine how much money is given to these three groups. GSS wants this added power to ensure the three groups provide equal representation to graduate students and undergraduate students, said GSS senator Alex Soejarto.

“This bill gives us some input and say to what our fees are going to,” Soejarto said. “It gives us a voice.”

The Student Government Joint Allocations Committee would be composed of five members: the GSB Finance Director, the GSS treasurer, two GSB representatives appointed by the GSB President with approval by the GSB Senate and one GSS representative by the GSS President.

GSB president Dan Mangan, GSB Finance Director Steve Elliot and GSB Sen. Adam Obrecht were proposers of the bill along with GSS President Cheryl Bartleson, GSSSen. Kevin Ragland and others.

The bill must pass both bodies of government by a two-thirds vote and was passed by GSS unanimously.

In other business: GSS also passed a bill in opposition to a budgetary line item for the Student Activities Center (SAC) from the Special Fees Committee for the fiscal year 1996-1997. The bill passed with a 47-1-2 vote. SAC made an initial request for 19 cents per student enrolled at ISU through a budgetary line item. But SAC did submit a required detailed budgetary proposal and outline of future plans for the money to the Student Special Fees Committee. For this reason, GSS opposed SAC’s funding.

Sen. Dana McCullough argued for the bill. She cited Assistant Dean of Students Terri Houston’s statement that SAC will put on their programs and provide services regardless of whether SAC will receive the funding. “What’s the purpose of funding if it’s going to happen anyway?” McCullough said.

Houston had come to the meeting as a special speaker to explain SAC.