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The Student Bar Association of Syracuse University’s College of Law saw a significant increase in spending during the 2023-24 academic school year, with their annual budget exceeding its expected revenue, according to a 2023-24 budget report obtained by The Daily Orange.

At the start of the academic year, the SBA Senate approved a budget totaling $55,000, including about $28,630 in rollover funds, according to the report, which was created by incoming SBA Executive Treasurer Zach Eichner. Throughout the fall semester, additional rollover money became available, leading to the final approved budget of $81,500.

This academic year, the SBA spent over $72,000 of its budget, leaving around $8,900 in rollover, according to the report. In the 2018-19 and 2019-20 school years, SBA rollovers amounted to approximately $37,000 and $30,000, respectively, according to the report. Now, some of the SBA’s executives claim the association’s increased spending was not approved through the correct channels.

“I was starting to catch on to the fact that there were things being spent without my knowledge,” said Bonnie Cheng, the SBA’s executive treasurer for the 2023-24 academic year. “And these were big ticket items.”

Cheng said the financial issues began to arise in late fall due to inconsistencies with transparency among association members. She and Eichner said many of the funds were allocated without the treasurer’s approval, causing them to need to “catch up” with the expenses after they had already been spent.

Eichner said he posted the report on the College of Law’s Blackboard page, outlining the SBA’s financial situation from the past year. The report states that “concerns including spending, management of funds, transparency, representations to the student body, and the executive compensation have all been part of the discourse” within the association.

The budget report states that this year’s budget issued lower executive stipends than previous years. Eichner said $4,800 was allocated in total for executive stipends, split among four executive board members, totalling to $1,200 with no parking benefit. In the 2021-22 school year, a stipend of $3,750 was split among three members who each received $1,250 each as well as free parking passes.

Charles Sirotek, a member of the SBA’s Class of 2025 Judicial Board, said he disagrees with the report. He claims that the SBA stopped issuing stipends last year because “everybody hated it,” and then brought it back this year. The report said numbers have “varied widely” on how much was allocated for stipends in 2022-23, with amounts ranging from $3,000 to $10,000.

“They’re clearly uncomfortable not having (the stipend) because it’s obvious – based on both the cultural trend of the laws and also in the draft document itself – you’re not supposed to be paid for this (executive) position,” Sirotek said.

He also said the report “admits” to violating the constitution by including payment to the Travis H.D. Lewin Advocacy Honor Society. The budget “includes emergency $5,000 to AHS – typically forbidden by SBA bylaws,” the report states.

The current SBA President, Noah Centore, is also reportedly “not present,” Sirotek said, due to an outside commitment that removes him from campus. Sirotek said the president should “instantly” resign, and that he’s also heard there is no expulsion provision for executive members to be removed from their position.

“He hasn’t disclosed where he’s going … (and) it’s irrelevant because it’s still taking him off campus and away from the law school. He could have pursued a position where this wouldn’t be a problem,” Sirotek said.

The D.O. has received numerous tips claiming that last year’s SBA president Devon Brown is responsible for the over-spending and transparency issues within the SBA. Brown did not respond to multiple requests for comment from The D.O.

Each registered student organization can request up to $2,500 from the SBA, Cheng said. She said while most of the money has gone to organizing on-campus events, such as “Go Orange” and tailgates, she has consistently not been aware of most SBA spending and had to approve allocations after they were already spent. She said she confronted Brown about her concerns and that he was “accepting” of her worries.

“I have really scrambled on the back end to make up for this,” Cheng said.

The D.O. obtained screenshots showing that SBA members brought these concerns forward in a “Syracuse Law 2025” GroupMe chat, where members asked if it was true that elected people voted in favor of their own stipends and if the SBA has been increasing student fees. They also asked where the funds for the stipends came from and why they were allocated without approval.

In response, Brown sent a statement in the chat, then proceeded to leave all group chats affiliated with the SBA, an anonymous source told The D.O. In Brown’s message to the group, he wrote the SBA is not increasing student activity fees, and the association had invested approximately $40,000 in RSOs this past year — which he called the “highest investment to date.”

“We were able to pay for everything this year, and there is plenty of money left over and you will all be able to comfortably pay for things next year,” Brown wrote in the statement. “Contrary to rumors, the SBA is not facing a significant budget deficit.”

Brown ended his statement by thanking everyone for their work and contributions before leaving the chat. An anonymous source said there have been suggestions to make Brown “pay out of pocket” for the expenses, but it is “unlikely” this will happen.

Sources said Craig Boise, dean of the College of Law, called the SBA’s spending “lavish.” In an email to Brown obtained by The D.O., Boise wrote that the College of Law cannot advance any further funds to the association this year. He wrote that he hopes the SBA will place “robust” policies and procedures to ensure that funds are used “equitably” for the next year.

Eichner said he and Cheng will be “ready and responsive” to any questions going forward regarding the SBA’s budget. He said he will also be looking through old records and budgets to create a “coherent picture” of how to assess the previous and current financial situations within the association.

Cheng said they also plan to fundraise, keep track of how much money organizations have and lower the $2,500 request limit for RSOs. She also said the treasurer’s signature on the budget will “carry more weight” than the president’s, and that Eichner will bring back a financial committee.

“What has to happen … to try and rebuild those sources is to go back into the university side of the records, to see what money was allocated, what money was spent,” Eichner said.

Senior Staff Writer Kyle Chouinard contributed reporting to this article.

CORRECTION: A previous version of this article stated that former SBA president Devon Brown was off campus this semester. This statement was meant to be in reference to the current president, Noah Centore. It also stated that Bonnie Cheng was unaware of some SBA funding, while Cheng was unaware of some SBA spending. The Daily Orange regrets these errors.

Published on May 9, 2024 at 1:00 am

Contact Roxanne: rmboychu@syr.edu