Like most 501(c)(3) charities, Binghamton University’s Student Association is required to annually file a report with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service documenting the financial health of the nonprofit organization. The most recent publicly available report, covering from June 1, 2024 to May 31, 2025, reveals that the SA ended the period $143,714 in debt.

While generating $5,131,355 in revenue during that period, the SA accumulated $5,275,069 in expenses. Still, the organization’s financial health improved from the previous fiscal year, when the SA raised only $4,343,947 and operated $636,348 in the red.

Gabriela Meza, the SA’s vice president for finance and a senior majoring in economics, told Pipe Dream in a statement that the SA’s current deficit is due to multiple factors, including “high administrative costs, contractual obligations, and overall inflationary pressures.”

The public report also reveals that SA E-Board members earned thousands of dollars in salary during that time. While Caitlin McMahon ‘25, the former VPF, earned $9,250 from June 2024 to May 2025 and Atticus Fauci, the vice president for programming, made $9,150, three other SA E-Board members earned $8,050 each: Mckenzie Skrastins, the SA president; Batia Rabin, the former executive vice president; and Krizia Yao, the former vice president for multicultural affairs.

“Salaries are determined by benchmarking against comparable positions both within the university and in the surrounding Binghamton area, with the goal of remaining competitive,” Meza wrote to Pipe Dream. “Funding for these salaries is drawn directly from the Student Association.”

Although Luca Cassidy ‘25 served as vice president for student success during that period, he was not listed on the report as an officer or as an individual trustee or director for the SA, leaving his salary unreported. However, from June 1, 2023 to May 31, 2024, Cassidy was listed as an individual trustee or director of the SA and earned $9,850 in compensation.

Meza said that it was unclear “as to why Luca Cassidy’s earnings are not listed, as this was a choice by our auditor.”

SA E-Board salaries from June 2024 to May 2025 appear to have decreased from the previous fiscal year. From June 2023 to May 2024, some former E-Board members earned five-figure salaries. Daniel Croce ‘24, a former VPF, collected $13,450 in reportable compensation — $4,200 more than McMahon earned. — while former SA President Elisheva Ezor ‘24 and VPP Sydney Ferreira ‘24 MA ‘25 made $11,450 and $10,150, respectively.

The SA incurred $146,946 in travel expenses and $877,439 in costs for “conferences, conventions, and meetings” last fiscal year, which Meza said represented the “cumulative travel costs of all student organizations supported by the SA, not solely executive or administrative travel.” For filing, the IRS defines “conferences, conventions, and meetings” as including costs like printed materials, speakers’ fees, facility rentals and registration expenses.

Meza said that some routine expenses for student organizations, like “event programming costs, decorations, guest speakers, and entertainment,” all fall within that category. Travel expenses related to “student organization activities” made up the nearly $147,000 figure, she added.

The SA has operated under a deficit since the 2024 fiscal year. The year prior, the SA had a positive revenue of $93,465.

From June 2023 to May 2024, the SA spent $542,862 on “conferences, conventions, and meetings.”

When it comes to tackling the SA’s current debt, Meza said the current activity fee should be raised to help ensure “long-term financial stability and a path away from operating at a deficit.”