Associated Students Inc. held their first Dollars for Organizations and Clubs (DOC) committee meeting of the 2014-15 academic year last week, funding Sacramento State student-operated clubs.

Fourteen student clubs applied for funding from ASI. The twelve groups that presented at the meeting were awarded.

Total DOC funds for this year is $100,630 with $12,925 available for the meeting Tuesday. Of the available funds, $7,975 was awarded. Any funds that were not awarded will roll over until the next DOC funding meeting.

“Roughly 20 programs on campus utilize ASI as a main source of financing their programs,” said Vice President of Finance Michael Bloss II.

The DOC committee makes funding decisions based on criteria in the ASI Operating Rules section 400.33 that states clubs requesting funding from DOC must be organized, structured and meaningful to the leadership and development of Sac State students. The rules also state that only clubs that provide completed required documents by predetermined deadlines will be considered for funding.

The committee, composed of five student voting members that are appointed by the vice president of finance, review the amount of funding being asked for by the student organization. After weighing in on the operating rules, the club application and conducting a consensus vote, a decision is then made on the amount of money that is awarded.

If a student wanted to become a DOC committee member, they would have to express an interest to the ASI Government office, then go through an interview process by ASI.

De’Anthony Jones, who has asked for funding from ASI before, said a student-elected committee would best serve the campus body rather than a student-appointed one.

“I have not ran into problems, but I would like a DOC funding committee that is solely elected as a means to get more student engagement through elections,” said Jones.

Of the five student committee members, two openly stated to having a conflict of interest as voting committee members. Two of the remaining members stated not having a conflict of interest, with the final voting member declining to state.

Since there is a possibility DOC members having conflict of interests arise in the voting process, the ASI Board of Directors gives all funds a final approval, as stated in the Operating Rules.

According to ASI Board Associate Lisa Dalton, this keeps the award process fair and equitable.

“The process in place in the Operating Rules allows each organization to follow a prescribed process in order to receive a share of the funding available through the DOC program,” said Dalton. “The review by the Board of Directors allows for a second level review and approval to ensure criteria is being evaluated and reviewed with each request.”

The next scheduled ASI meeting will be held on Wed Oct. 1 at 2 p.m. in the Well-Terrace Suite.