The Campus Activities Board is planning a comedy show for the spring semester that would feature talent such as Jay Mohr & of “Jerry Maguire” fame & Margaret Cho and John Leguizamo, CAB treasurer James Hurley said.

Booking big-name acts such as these takes a chunk out of CAB’s budget, though.

The total CAB budget for speakers currently is $47,242, and CAB was looking for an increase in that budget to $51,950 for the fiscal year 2002-03.

But CAB is not getting what it wants, at least in the way of funding.

A recent denial by the Student Association Finance Committee for CAB’s proposed budget increase will force the group to reexamine its committee and policy structure.

CAB currently has a budget of $466,456, which is about 36 percent of the SA’s $1.28 million student fee-funded organization budget. For two meetings last month, members of CAB lobbied for an overall increase of $117,684.63.

The SA eventually agreed to give CAB an additional $30,319.64 for next year. SA treasurer Karega Harris doesn’t believe CAB will receive its requested funding anytime soon unless several changes occur.

“I can’t see it, not in my tenure, unless there is a high enrollment or student fees are raised,” Harris said. “Organizations ask for more funding than we have to give & that’s expected.”

Hurley disagreed, saying all of CAB’s requests for funds are justified.

CAB Concerts, which has a budget of $56,895, asked for an increase to $92,146. Included in the proposal were funds for increased security and greater amenities for piano tuners.

“We want the musicians to feel like they are at home,” Hurley said. “If we do have a musician that needs a piano, we want them to have the highest quality possible.”

Hospitality funds were to be increased from $1,500 to $2,500 at Chick Evans Field House shows and from $350 to $3,600 at the Holmes Student Center’s Diversions Lounge shows. Hurley said increases are needed because food, drinks and hotel prices all increase as the artists get bigger.

“They ask for so much stuff, and they won’t play without it,” Hurley said. “It’s part of the contract.”

CAB Summer Programming, which receives $28,442, asked for an increase to $43,666. Included in the proposal were funds for increased honorariums, sound rentals, classical films and Diversions movies. Why is so much money needed if the majority of students are not around in the summer?

“It’s open to all, counting the community,” Hurley said. “We just want to open it up to the community as well because NIU and DeKalb work together.”

Harris said even though CAB is set up to be one of the main student organizations, there are other campus groups that need funding. He also said CAB should know what students want to see and initiate more ways to get student input.

“If the purpose of the organization is to be central programming for students, at any given time of the year, I should be able to ask you what the students want and [CAB] should be able to tell me,” Harris said.

Even though CAB’s pending fund increase for next year might not be what the organization was looking for, it is significant.

“The increase they received was the biggest increase by a student organization at one given time in years as far as their allocation,” Harris said.

During the finance meetings, CAB presented its proposed budget, broken down line-item by line-item. The SA, however, didn’t investigate as to the specific reasons for some of the increases.

“It would be pointless to do so,” SA senator Lonnie Pollard said. “I don’t know the workings of CAB to know what they need.”

Pollard added that giving CAB members a flat amount and letting them disperse the funds would allow CAB to put the funds where it needs them most.

“The student fees haven’t been raised and cost and inflation have happened,” CAB President Mike Brady said. “If the SA budget remains the same and never increases, our scope of program will decrease.”

Brady said CAB should receive the necessary funds it gets because it recognizes total student need.

“We deserve a big chunk of it,” Brady said. “Student fees are best spent in this organization because we are geared toward the entire campus.”

Hurley said meeting with members of the finance committee made CAB realize it has some areas to fine tune.

“We opened the eyes of the SA, and in turn, they opened our eyes to some of the issues we need to work out,” Hurley said.