Any time student government or, for that matter, any type of government manages to become more streamlined and cuts back on extraneous funding, it should be applauded. As such, the editorial board would like to extend some praise to the Student Finance Committee for its efforts.

The subcommittee approach improved the efficiency of the process, moving from the blanket approach, which allocated funds without much careful scrutiny.

Beyond limiting funding to groups that actually need it and to the amount the groups actually need, the subcommittees also made a point of assessing the efficacy of the funding they were granting. For certain smaller groups, a small contribution can make an immeasurable difference where that same dollar amount serves as but a fraction of a larger group’s expenses.

The new approach and increased scrutiny concerning specific budget lines actually led to an overall decrease in the amount of funding requested. After being required to provide specific amounts and receipts, individual groups looked more closely at their finances and where less could be spent — AcFee, in a sense, provided a critical lesson in financial prudence for a large group of students.

At the same time, the AcFee committees have also provided assistance for groups in a variety of ways, increasing the effectiveness of the funding. By providing a list of good, cheaper caterers and reducing the cost of the Student Life Center ballroom, the Student Finance Committee has provided greater means for success on tighter budgets. Some groups have already planned greater collaboration in response to these moves, hoping to do more by combining efforts and some funding for the next year.