Last night, the University Park Undergraduate Association voted 36-0-1 on a resolution presenting the results of an audit of the UPUA’s Department of Legal Affairs. It had previously surfaced that Legal Affairs had not been appropriately reporting its expenditures and was perhaps doing some inappropriate spending.

The legislation is an official acknowledgement by the UPUA that, as the resolution reads, “the Treasurer, the President, and 4th Assembly Director of Legal Affairs did not appropriately adhere to the Budgetary Policy or neglected to act in the best interests of the Penn State student body.”

UPUA President Christian Ragland asserted that Legal Affairs directors had already been dealing with the concerns raised by the Assembly and that the audit and resolution were “a presentation so that this kind of confusion doesn’t happen again.”

The audit found that Legal Affairs did not go through the proper channels with some of its expenditures. It failed to obtain the signature of the Chair of the Assembly before it submitted its finances to the UPUA President and did not write proper reports explaining purchases, including a dinner bill at the Allen Street Grill of $366.85 last semester. The resolution provided that UPUA meals were not to be paid for with student money.

The audit also took objection to the purchase of Legal Affairs Koozies and bottle openers, again with the issue of student money, here going to “support activities related to alcohol consumption.”

However, reflecting Ragland’s inclination to move on toward the future, the overall tone of the matter stressed education; the UPUA will more clearly educate its members on proper budgetary procedure and ethical spending.

The UPUA also bid farewell to On-Campus Representative Katie Perugini, who recently resigned. “It’s something I feel is necessary at this point in time,” said Perugini, citing another commitment as the reason for her departure. “It’s a tough decision. I’m going to miss it.”

Coming Attractions:

• Test prep classes subsidized by the UPUA are close to becoming official.
• Members from the UPUA and student governments of Pitt, Temple, and Lincoln will meet at Temple on December 19 to discuss the formation of a united student association between the schools.