Senate Proposes Cutting Activities Fee Share

Finance Chair Luca Cyrus proposes lowering Senate's Undergraduate Activities Fee allocation from 12.2 percent to 11.5 percent, with the difference going largely to the Joint Funding Committee.

Updated on Nov. 2, 2026 in Financial Aid

Senate Proposes Cutting Activities Fee Share

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Should student government budgets be cut to fund more student group activities?

Senate Finance Chair Luca Cyrus has proposed decreasing Senate's Undergraduate Activities Fee allocation from 12.2 percent to 11.5 percent. The reallocated funding would largely go to the Joint Funding Committee.

Why it matters

The proposal is meant to lessen the burden on Senate's budget when the legacy Media Account runs out. Media subscriptions, which cost over $25,000 last fiscal year, are currently covered by that account.

The proposed change would cut roughly $15,000 from Senate's budget, while the Media Account began the current fiscal year with $191,573.67. Media subscriptions cost over $25,000 last fiscal year, and the legacy account is projected to be exhausted by the end of fiscal year 2032 under the proposal.

The players

Luca Cyrus

Luca Cyrus is the Finance Chair of Carnegie Mellon's student Senate who proposed the change to the Activities Fee allocation.

Joint Funding Committee

The Joint Funding Committee is a student body that provides funds to student organizations through a tier-based funding system and capital and supplemental funding applications.

The details

Cyrus suggested jointly funding media subscriptions with Senate's Agency Account and the legacy Media Fee Account. The Media Fee was consolidated into the Activities Fee in 2023, so all media is currently covered by the legacy Media Account.

Fiscal year 2023: Media Fee consolidated into the Activities Fee.
Beginning of current fiscal year: Media Account balance recorded at $191,573.67.
Upcoming fiscal year: Proposed $15,000 budget cut would take effect.
End of fiscal year 2032: Legacy Media Account projected to be exhausted.

Budget Trajectory

The proposal responds directly to the 2023 consolidation of the Media Fee into the Activities Fee, which left media costs to be covered by a legacy account. Under the plan, that account would be exhausted by the end of fiscal year 2032, and Cyrus expects a buffer of over $26,000 each year once the reallocation takes effect.

If approved, the 1 percentage-point reduction would lower Senate's allocation but raise funding available through the Joint Funding Committee. Organizations could apply for tier increases to receive more funding in the coming fiscal year.

The takeaway

The proposal shows how a single budget line, once folded into a broader fee, can shape how student organizations and media access are funded for years. Students following campus budgets can watch how the reallocation and the legacy account's exhaustion play out.