University of Iowa Student Government senators were divided on legislation Tuesday night that would allocate $25,000 to the Hawks Nest Hawkapalooza, voting 18-9 to table the decision.

Last year, UISG approved a $30,000 request from the organization for its first event. Held on Sept. 3 last year, the event drew a crowd of more than 10,000 students and was highlighted by a Lupe Fiasco concert.

Hawk’s Nest President Tim McLaughlin said the group would not require UISG funds in the future but needs the money now as a bargaining chip when asking for donations.

Senators held opposing views about allocating the money.

UISG allocates far less money to other large campus groups, UISG President Michael Currie said, so it would be unfair to grant Hawkapalooza such a large sum.

“It doesn’t seem equitable to me,” he said. “If it passed tonight, I probably would have vetoed it.”

Sen. Alejandro Alonso took a more favorable stance.

“Other schools have all these great traditions, these big concerts, big events, and we just don’t have that,” he said.

Although it allocated $30,000 to the event last year, UISG doesn’t always have that money to give, Currie said. Last year, UISG was using excess money that hadn’t been used from the Collegiate Readership Program. However, funds from that account are diminishing, Currie said.

— by Michelle Hillenbrand