The Student Council Representative Body heard appeals Tuesday night from 11 Contracted Independent Organizations.
During the appeals process, Council gives CIOs the opportunity to have decisions made by the Appropriations Committee reconsidered by the Representative Body.
"As with any process, the appropriations process has some gray areas that can be interpreted by a higher court of sorts," Council President Daisy Lundy said. "The Representative Body is a group of people that can appeal decisions made by the Appropriations Committee or allow provisions that the Appropriations Committee could not."
Appropriations Committee Co-chair Connor Fee said the appeals process offers an important review of the committee's decisions.
"Inevitably, with 325 groups, nothing is going to be perfect," Fee said. "Appeals are an opportunity for Council to make amends. We're smoothing out the rough edges and trying to make sure everyone walks away as happy as possible."
Council decided to uphold the original decisions of the Appropriations Committee for the Environmental Sciences Organization, Phi Beta Lambda, Students for a Free Tibet, Tyrannosaurus Rock and the Arab Student Organization.
The Representative Body recommended new allocations for First Right and Team Cavalier. First Right's new allocation will be $331.94, and Team Cavalier will receive $150; both initially had been awarded $0.
The Ballroom Dance Club's allocation changed only slightly. The group had originally received money from the Appropriations Committee to buy costumes, but the organization decided purchasing a new boom box was a higher priority. Council, with the Appropriation Committee's blessing, unanimously voted to allow the group to use its funds toward a new boom box instead of costumes.
Council also voted to refer the budget of Phi Delta Phi, a law school-based ethics fraternity, back to the Appropriations Committee and chose to table the debate on the Virginia Pep Band's budget request until next Tuesday.
The most controversial appeal of the evening was filed by Agape Christian Fellowship. The religious organization wanted funds for travel and lodging expenses in order to attend a Florida Christian Conference. They also requested money to publish religious materials.
Fee said funding the organization for those purposes violated guidelines set by the Board of Visitors.
"What the groups do on their own time is up to their discretion but what we pay for is a different issue," he said. "We spent a lot of time deliberating on this group because we wanted to be fair. Funding them is against the rules because the conference is social and religious in nature."
J.D. Taliaferro, current Law School student and Agape member, cited the 1995 U.S. Supreme Court case Rosenberger v. U.Va., which supports the funding for religious groups based on First Amendment rights.
"We ask only for the attendance and non-religious aspects of the conference," Taliaferro said. "We are not asking for worship and social funds. We believe this is viewpoint discrimination."
After voting to fund Agape for the publication of flyers but not for travel expenses to the conference, Council approved a motion to reconsider Agape's budget concerning travel expenses next week.
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