The Oshkosh Student Association will see an approximately 4.5 percent cut in its budget for the 2017-2018 school year after OSA President Austyn Boothe proposed a similar percentage cut.

OSA received a budget of $260,000 for the 2016-2017 school year while the 2017-2018 recommendation from the Segregated Fee Committee was $248,597, according to University documents.

OSA President-elect Maria Berge, who is also the current OSA Vice President, said she agreed with all the cuts.

“The Buzz app was the largest cut, but I felt as though it was necessary,” Berge said. “It was sad to see the program go, but after looking at how few people regularly used it, we couldn’t justify spending $15,000 dollars on a yearly subscription. We also are very careful to only ask for what we need, so we made sure to trim back whatever excess we found”

Chairman of the Segregated Fee Committee Christopher Stockus said he is appreciative of OSA’s fiscal responsibility and concern for the current financial climate at UW Oshkosh, especially in regard to the Buzz app.

“The Committee asks that future OSA leadership maintain this fiscal responsibility, given the increased focus on limiting student costs within the State of Wisconsin and University of Wisconsin System,” Stockus said.

OSA President Austyn Boothe said OSA proposed a budget cut of about 4.68 percent after looking at what services are actually being used by students.

Boothe said she worked carefully with incoming Berge, to make sure they did not cut essential services, such as Student Legal Services.

“I think that students will really benefit from the reduced OSA budget, as it will cost them less money in fees,” Boothe said. “Maria and I were careful to make sure we did not cut services that students use on a regular basis.”

Berge said she thought OSA did a great job of being conservative and setting a good base for next year.

“We tried to plan as best as we could for the future so that any extra expenses that may come with new contracts would be covered,” Berge said.

Berge said OSA added a small amount to their marketing budget, which will greatly benefit OSA as a whole.

“With this addition, it will help advertise the services that OSA offers students, as well as hopefully help fill open positions within OSA,” Berge said. “We are always looking for more involvement.”

It is important for OSA to be fiscally responsible with the money they receive to make sure college is affordable for UWO students, Boothe said.

Berge said the only issue she can foresee is the possibility that the bids for new contracts for Titan Transit or Student Legal Services come in higher than expected.

“We did budget some extra for Titan Transit just in case that were to happen, so I feel as though we are prepared for next year,” Berge said.