It’s that time of year again. The birds are singing, the flowers are (making an attempt at) blooming and every young man’s fancy is turning to thoughts of funding.

Budget hearings begin this week, and any organization that wants a budget for next year will have to show up.

ASG has a budget of approximately $190,000, and each year the finance committee must decide how to allocate those funds.

“I think it’s the most important thing we do,” said Eddie Mattock, assistant treasurer of ASG.

The money is put into different funds, including the general fund, senior fund, speaker fund and executive fund.

“Ultimately it’s your money,” said Chip Moon, ASG financial controller. “Anyone can request funds from the general fund.”

The allocation of funds for organizations begins when a student organization submits its budget request form. These are due by 5 p.m. on Friday, April 13.

Then the group can sign up for a time slot Sunday, when its request will be reviewed. This can all be done online, but there have been some problems with the system.

“We’ve had a lot of complaints after transitioning to the new record system, the portal,” Mattock said.

At the hearings, the finance committee questions the representatives of the organizations and evaluates their requests.

“We definitely do like people who use everything they ask for,” Mattock said.

Aside from past spending history, the committee also considers the number of active members and the group’s contribution to the Allegheny community.

The more detailed a request is, the more likely it is to be approved. “The easier you make it for us, the easier we make it for you,” Mattock said.

If a group’s leaders do not show up to their designated time, they will simply have no budget.

“It’s a serious sign of disrespect,” Moon said. “In my eyes, they shouldn’t even get the time of day.”

However, the groups can come to the next senate meeting to appeal. This happened to the International Club last year.

“We sent the request through student activities,” said Al Lucino, president of International Club. “Somehow it didn’t go through, and as a result members had to appeal to the senate.”

International Club was allotted $1,000, less than their original request of $4,000.

“I was happy to see the amount of support we got in ASG,” Lucino said. However, the group had to request money from other groups and funds to meet its expenses for events such as International Week.