This page contains current budget documents for the University Staff Association, as well as a budget archive at the bottom.
Fiscal Year 2027
The FY27 Proposed Budget below will be voted on by the membership on October 14, 2026.
Proposed Budget and Letter from the Treasurer:
FY27 Budget FAQ
How does our FY26 budget compare to what we spent?
Last year the Treasurer and Financial Committee presented a significantly trimmed down budget, and over the past year the Executive Board managed to underspend even that lean budget. Most notably we budgeted for, but did not spend, wages of $15,600 and computer expenses of $4,000. We are currently moving forward with hiring a part-time organizer/clerical position, so these “Wages” savings will not be repeated this year. Most other line items were in line with or slightly below budgeted expectations. Even if we’ve budgeted for something the E-board still weighs all spending decisions carefully and votes accordingly.
If there is a surplus at the end of the fiscal year, what happens to it?
If there’s a surplus left over at the end of the year it can be held in savings to bolster the association’s financial reserves, rolled over into next year’s budget to help us keep dues increases in check, or some combination of the two. We are choosing to run a deficit for FY27 which will be covered by the surplus from FY26.
How does dues inflation to the Massachusetts Teachers Association (MTA) and National Educators Association (NEA) impact our dues?
MTA and NEA dues are the largest single line item in our budget. MTA and NEA dues were increased by roughly 7.35% this year, from $344.00 to $363.75 (+$19.75) and $128.50 to $143.50 (+$15.00) respectively. Like last year, we are again proposing to absorb these increases without raising our member dues, which cuts into our local’s share of member dues. We will almost certainly not be able to do this a third time for FY28.
If MTA and NEA dues are going up, how is that line item lower this year than last year? Is this a new math infinite money hack?
Unfortunately, for many years USA has suffered from unit erosion. Our membership has slowly fallen as management eliminates positions and reclassifies many of our positions into PSU. They’re not doing this out of the goodness of their hearts. In many ways our contract is fundamentally better than PSU’s. We get yearly step increases, PSU does not. For many of our members, especially those with some seniority (or those who get any overtime) even taking an “upgrade” into PSU would result in a pay cut. USA fights hard to preserve USA positions and to upgrade within the bargaining unit whenever possible, but it’s just a fact that our membership has declined. Our largest budget item, dues to MTA & NEA, is a variable cost to us. MTA & NEA may raise the dues per member year to year, but our total payments to them rise and fall in direct relation to our membership numbers. The rest of our budget, however, must be shouldered by a slightly lower number of people than we had last year. This creates additional upwards pressure on dues.
How often does USA increase dues and how does it compare to other unions on campus?
Last year we also chose not to raise member dues, absorbing the MTA and NEA increases at the cost of our local dues. The last time USA increased dues was in July 2024, when dues were increased by $72.80 from $556.14 to $628.94, a $2.80 increase per pay period from $21.39 to $24.19. AFSCME (which has twice as many members as USA) has slightly higher member dues of $696.28 per year ($26.78 per pay period). PSU’s dues are significantly higher at $1096.16 per year ($43.01 per pay period). Looking ahead we are likely to propose a modest dues increase for FY28 to cover MTA/NEA increases as well as increased costs to our local’s budget, but for this year we believe it is appropriate to hold our member dues at their current level.
There is a $6k telephone budget line in the budget. What does this money go to since we’ve moved to Teams phone?
These funds are set aside to reimburse USA e-board members for a portion of their internet and telephone expenses related to their work with members and organizing. Each e-board member may receive a reimbursement of up to $135 per quarter ($540 per year). It is up to the e-board member to seek reimbursement for these expenses.
Can the budget be sent out in advance next year? How can we increase transparency in next year’s budget vote process?
The new dues rate for NEA is set at the NEA Representative Assembly that takes place in early July. The earliest we can realistically deliver a budget to our members is late July/early-August. We had hoped to have the budget available by August for this fiscal year but were delayed by Kronos organizing, late summer vacations of E-Board & Finance Committee members, the opening of the fall semester, and then Fair Wages Now organizing. Last year’s budget meeting was held on September 15th, and this year’s will be one month later. We aim to be earlier next year. We got a lot of positive feedback from last year’s efforts to increase budget transparency. To build on this progress we have expanded this FAQ section, updated the descriptions for the expense categories found in our proposed budget, and included last year’s budget for easier comparison.
Budget Archive
FY2026
On Monday, September 16, 2025, the members of University Staff Association ratified the FY26 Budget by a vote of 181 to 3.
FY26 Budget FAQ
How does our FY25 budget compare to what we spent?
At the close of this past fiscal year, we had a net income of $62,191.49. We came in under budget in categories such as wages ($25,000), hotel/lodging and meal reimbursements related to attendance at meetings and conferences (roughly $5000), and travel expenses for professional development ($6750). We also saw an increase in our membership, which means we received about $20,000 more in dues than we had anticipated.
If there is a surplus at the end of the fiscal year, does it roll over into next year’s budget?
Yes, this surplus does roll over into next year’s budget. For that reason, we have decided not to increase dues for FY26.
How often does USA dues increase and how does it compare to other unions on campus?
A motion was passed by USA membership to increase Local dues by $1 annually ($0.04 per paycheck). We felt it appropriate and within our means to absorb that cost this year.
There is a $6k telephone budget line in this year’s budget. What does this money go to since we’ve moved to Teams phone?
These funds are set aside to reimburse USA e-board members for a portion of their internet and telephone expenses related to their work with members and organizing. Each e-board member may receive a reimbursement of up to $135 per quarter ($540 per year). It is up to the e-board member seek reimbursement for these expenses.
How does dues inflation to the Massachusetts Teachers Association (MTA) and National Educators Association (NEA) impact our dues increase?
MTA and NEA dues were increased by roughly 3% this year. By not choosing to raise dues this year, USA will be allocating $11,365 of our FY25 net income to cover the shortage.
Can the budget be sent out in advance next year? How can we increase transparency in next year’s budget vote process?
The new dues rate for NEA is set at the NEA Representative Assembly that takes place in early July. The earliest we can realistically deliver a budget to our members is late July/early-August. We aim to have the budget available by early August at the latest for next fiscal year. We were delayed this year due to challenges we faced in switching authorized users for the Union’s bank account and staffing shortages that led to a delay in receiving our FY25 financial statement. We also wanted to increase transparency in this year’s voting process by providing additional resources, such as the expense category descriptions and FAQ.
