The Student Fee Review Board tabled a funding request from the Athletics Department at the board's first deliberation meeting Saturday.
The department's representative could not account for where all the requested funding would go, and SFRB members decided to revisit the issue when the Athletics Department can provide the information.
The board is responsible for allocating more than $8 million of student fees among 22 UNM departments and will meet several more times before the end of February.
ASUNM President Ashley Fate said the allocation of the fees must be considered carefully.
"Every single decision we make here today affects every single one of our constituents. What we are doing is very, very important," she said.
The board's recommendations must be approved by the Board of Regents in March before they take effect.
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
The SFRB began its deliberations Saturday on departments including athletics, the Center for Academic Program Support, and the Student Government
Accounting Office, which receive recurring funding each year.
The application for funding stipulated that the departments account for everything SFRB money is used for. The Athletics Department was unable to give a direct account of where funds were spent on their application.
Athletics receives approximately $1.6 million in SFRB funding per year.
Senior Associate Athletic Director Tim Cass said that athletics cannot state everything the SFRB funds are used for, but he said that money from student fees is used to benefit student athletes. He said allocations from the SFRB are the primary means the department has for funding scholarships, recruitment and tutoring.
"Our request is typically $1.5 million, and it is a percentage of our overall $25 million budget," he said. "The funding helps to offset the overall costs of things like medical care and scholarships as well as programs like the band and Spirit Squad."
Although athletics will receive funding from the SFRB, GPSA President Christopher Ramirez said that knowing where the money is spent is important to the deliberations of the board because the funds that are allocated should be able to be accounted for.
"I am very open to continue supporting our student athletes . but the Athletics Department needs to be accountable," he said. "I don't want the money that I pay spent to pay a football coach (or) a basketball coach. I want it to go directly to the student athletes. I want it to directly benefit the students."
Cass said the SFRB funds cover a variety of areas that affect students on a daily basis.
"Student participation at these events is part of student life in general," he said. "We have tried to develop a partnership with our student body. We have worked very hard to establish that. Athletics has become a very important part of student life. We can create a connection that can last for a lifetime."
The SFRB deliberations will continue through February. The board has looked at the applications and budgets for each department, but no recommendations for funding have been made yet.
Undergraduate students pay a total of $508.35 in fees in addition to their tuition.
Graduate students pay $524.38. The total amount of student fees that are allocated to departments is based on the number of full-time students taking at least 12 credit hours.
The funding that the SFRB is able to give to the departments depends on the level of projected enrollment and the fluctuation of students entering and leaving the University. Debbie Morris, director of Student Activities, said the uncertainty of enrollment will affect the distribution of funds.
"We give you an estimate based on what we think enrollment is going to be, and you allocate your funds based on that," Morris told the board Saturday. "When the actual enrollment comes in, if it is more, you have extra money that you can do extra things with.. If it comes in less - if the enrollment had declined - then you would be out money."
The SFRB is also required to meet with the Board of Regents to determine whether the cost of tuition will be raised.
"We have the unique opportunity that we are on both sides of the table," Fate told the board Saturday. "In a few months, we'll be in front of the table requesting that people keep our tuition and fees low. Remember that every decision we make today we need to be able to present with pride. We need to be able to say that we have a reason for what we've done."
