In hallowed Graham Chapel on Sept. 17, students waited. They were there to see Margaret Cho, famous comedian and actor. This A-lister was a welcome notch in the belt for the Social Programming Board (SPB) — Cho is an Emmy-nominated personality with 274 thousand Instagram followers. Most comedy fans know and love her. So why were there only 10 people in the audience?

Senior Mishka Narasimhan, who serves as Vice President of Finance for Student Union, sat down for an interview with Aliana Mediratta, Junior News Editor for Student Life, to offer insight into the annual budget process. This Q&A has been edited for length and clarity. 

Student Union unanimously passed a $4.2 million general budget on March 26 for the 2023-2024 academic year, an increase by 5% from this year’s $4 million budget.

We as an Editorial Board got together and laid out some fun things to do over Spring Break that are within a reasonable price range and doable wherever you spend your break.

After Student Union cut over $550,000 in funding requests from the budget, students groups must adjust their budgets for the upcoming year.

SU Vice President of Finance and senior Iliana Ragnone supplemented Senate and Treasury’s suggested cuts of around $436,000 with her own cuts of about $208,000, balancing the budget at $3,328,918.20.

If you’ve been following this election cycle (or American politics ever), chances are that you’ve heard someone mention the national debt. It may have been in the context of a balanced budget amendment—the idea wherein Congress would not be allowed to pass a budget which contributed to the national debt—or it could have been used as an arbitrary measure of how well a president grew the economy.

Student Union allotted funding to student groups on Wednesday, budgeting the highest percentage of requested funds to Category 1 and 2 student groups that has been granted in at least the past four semesters.

After over 11 hours of debate, the Student Union budget for the 2016-2017 fiscal year passed Sunday with no money towards fall WILD, but a large increase in the budget for the spring 2017 WILD.

More than two months earlier and in less than half the time of last year’s decision, Student Union passed its 2013-14 general budget with only one dissenting vote. Despite some concerns voiced previously about the increases in the budget, the general budget passed Treasury unanimously (16-0) Wednesday night less than an hour after discussion began.