Funding

USG is proud to be able to help fund the hundreds of student organizations in our Hawkeye community. We want to make the process of accessing these funds as easy as possible for student leaders.

In this section of the USG website, you will find information on how to utilize our funds, opportunities that are offered by other campus partners, and who to contact if you have questions or concerns.

You can submit a student organization funding request through the Engage Budgeting System.

Learn how to submit funding requests

If you are wanting to submit a funding request for the Undergraduate Student Government (USG) or Graduate and Professional Student Government (GPSG) please see the step by step process outlined here.

A Brief Overview of Finance

Each student pays a flat “Activities Fee” of $39.50 per semester or $79 per academic year.
- In FY25, this created a budget of $2,038,200

This fee, also referred to as the Student Activity Fee (SAF), provides the funding for both USG and GPSG, among other student services

The SAF Committee, a committee of students and advisors that meets periodically throughout the year, determines funding for each budget/account.

The SAF currently serves as our one and only source of revenue.

How Do We Spend Our Money?

USG Operates on a Fiscal Year basis (July-June)

Much of our revenue goes to “Fixed Cost Budgets”
- These are organizations/services here on campus that receive most of their funding from the SAF.

In FY25, this budget was $1,311,000

The remaining funds are split by a proportion of student population between USG (79%) and GPSG (21%) and are allocated into one of three accounts:

Student Auditing Budgeting and Allocations Committee (SABAC)

This account funds requests from Student Organizations for events, trips, initiatives, or maintenance.
In FY25, SABAC was given a budget of $339,700
This provided a bi-weekly budget during the school year of $17,212.46
The USG Finance Committee reviews, adjusts, and approves these requests on a biweekly basis.
Review, adjustment, and approval is strictly based on compliance with the funding guidelines listed on the USG website.

Reserve Fund

Created through reversions (unspent funds) from prior years and any money left over from SAF.
This funding is completely discretionary and serves as the main source of funding for major projects within USG.
Finance Committee Members should work with other committees and campus partners to fund initiatives/projects directly benefiting students.
At the end of each administration, the Contingency Fund must have a balance between $120,000 and $60,000, with a recommended balance of $90,000.