A bill on Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s desk, if passed, will give the public a glimpse of how campus auxiliary organizations, such as Associated Students Inc. and University Enterprises Inc., handle their money.

SB 330, authored by Sen. Leland Yee, D-San Francisco, expands the Public Records Act to include campus auxiliary organizations. Schwarzenegger vetoed an earlier version of the bill in October 2009, saying it would scare away private donors. The bill has been amended to allow donors to remain anonymous, as long as the donor does not receive a gift worth more than $500 in exchange for the donation.

Schwarzenegger has until Sept. 30 to either veto the bill or sign it into law.

Six Sacramento State auxiliary organizations that will be affected by the bill are UEI, University Enterprises Development Group, the University Foundation, Capitol Public Radio, ASI and the University Union.

“These auxiliary organizations are there for the sole purpose of helping students, and should be subject to the Public Records Act,” said Adam Keigwin, Yee’s chief of staff. “Some of student’s fees go to auxiliary organizations. That’s student money, and they should have oversight of that money. It’s the only way to ensure that administrators are accountable.”

The governor was still reviewing the bill as of Sept. 1, and would not comment on it publicly, said spokesman Matt Connelly.

Opponents of the bill said even its amended version could deter donors, ultimately decreasing revenue for auxiliaries and diminishing their ability to serve students.

“The bill’s language still puts requirements on donors,” said Erik Fallis, spokesman for the California State University chancellor’s office.

Fallis cited the amended language barring anonymity of donors receiving gifts valued more than $500.

“It still has the likelihood of a chilling effect on donors who would like to be considered anonymous,” Fallis said.

The CSU proposed multiple amendments that would have “better protected donor anonymity while allowing auxiliaries to benefit students and faculty,” Fallis said.

But the proposals were not considered, he said.

“The amendments would have allowed auxiliaries to function the way they were set up to – by operating as nonprofits to benefit the California State University system,” Fallis said.

Chris Chavez, president of the California State Student Association, the organization made up of the student governments of all 23 CSU campuses, agreed the bill could deter donors if signed into law.

“If somebody donates to the University Foundation, and other organizations can see it, those organizations can certainly hit the donors up for money,” Chavez said. “It could cause people to shy away.”

SB 330, as law, could also harm auxiliary organizations’ business operations, Chavez said.

“Let’s say the (University) Union at Sac State puts out a request for food vendors to come to campus,” Chavez said. “If those contracts become public, it becomes harder for the Union to negotiate the best contract.”

RECENT CONTROVERSIES

Just this summer, two CSU auxiliary organizations stirred controversy.

UEI came under scrutiny for paying to renovate Sac State President Alexander Gonzalez’s kitchen. A July audit by the attorney general’s office found the auxiliary’s 2003 purchase of a new range and hood for Gonzalez’s kitchen stove “was not a transaction that fell within UEI’s charitable purposes.”

CSU Stanislaus’ University Foundation sparked national headlines in June for refusing to reveal what it paid former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin to speak at the university.

Following a court order, the auxiliary organization disclosed Palin’s $75,000 speaker’s fee.

Yee’s bill would expand disclosure rules for those university foundations, Keigwin said.

Ken Paglia can be reached at [email protected]