The Michigan Student Assembly approved fall budget recommendations for student groups, projects, and community service at last night"s meeting.

The Budget Priorities Committee and the Community Service Commission review each group"s application and recommend allocations to the assembly for approval.

One of the assembly"s primary functions is the allocation of their funds to student groups.

The money comes from a $5.69 student fee charged to each student"s tuition.

The assembly will be asking for a $1 increase in the student fee on their November election ballot.

Budget Priorities Commission Chair Javier Restrepo said student groups must complete an application to receive funding from MSA.

"The importance of the group in the community, whether or not they are an umbrella group for other student groups and the group"s revenue help us decide which groups get funding," Restrepo said.

The Budget Priorities Committee is given more than $80,000 to allocate to student groups, and the Community Service Committee has a budget of $38,000.

MSA allocated $2,000 to Dance Marathon, the most given to any student group. Some representatives complained that the money should be distributed more evenly, but the assembly voted not to change the committee"s recommendations for any group, including Dance Marathon.

Student groups must first be registered with MSA before they can apply. Groups are required to provide detailed explanations of how their allocations would be spent and provide receipts of their past purchases so the committee can determine a fair amount of funding.

Restrepo said the groups are not always happy with the funds the committee recommends, so they are allowed to appeal their allocation before the budget is brought to the assembly.

To receive the funds the assembly allocates, group members must first sign a grant agreement.

Later in the meeting, resolutions to support the implementation of a fall study break and to support a student presence at a Dec. 6 hearing on the University"s affirmative action lawsuits before the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati were introduced.

The fall study break is a proposal drafted by an MSA and LSA Student Government joint committee that if approved next week, will be sent to administrators for review.

The assembly passed a similar resolution last month in support of student presence at the appeals trial. The hearing was originally scheduled for yesterday.