As a result of university budget reorganization, the campus police department is working with less funding.

The Student Nighttime Auxiliary Patrol, or SNAP, is usually up and running at the beginning of the semester, but this fall it has been delayed until Oct. 1.

SNAP employs student workers to escort students on campus who do not want to walk alone at night.

“We’re still able to adequately escort people around campus,” said UNA Police Chief Bob Pastula. “Typically we have other funds that come in that would cover that lapse in funding. This is the first year it never came.”

The department’s funding is approximately $4,000 below where it was when Pastula began working at UNA five years ago, but, he said, it is even further below where it was last year.

“My budget has been increasingly going up since I’ve been here, then this year it just dropped down to below the first year that I was here,” he said. “We’re well below $25,000 less than we received last year.”

He said the department is forced to cut back on all areas of spending.

“We’ve been driving less vehicles, patrolling on foot more, patrolling on bicycles more, we’ve cut back on making copies and are trying to do everything electronically,” he said.

SNAP is partially funded through student worker money, but that is not enough to cover the cost, Pastula said.

Sophomore Tra Armstead said cuts to the police department budget make campus feel less safe.

“I guess it depends on what the money is going towards, but at the same time I feel like it’s less safe, and I don’t think they should be cutting money from it,” Armstead said. “I guess SNAP is like peace of mind, and if they’re taking that away, we won’t have that peace of mind.”

SGA leaders say they would like to help provide more funding for the police department so programs like SNAP remain available to students.

One of SGA’s goals for the year is improving campus safety initiatives.

Vice President of Senate Nick Lang said he has talked with Pastula this week and is waiting to get a breakdown of the budget.

“We have to make sure we get the breakdown of everything before we address it,” he said.

Lang said Pastula predicted the police department budget would possibly run out in the coming year as well.

“What we’re trying to do now, before that gets there, is find out where his budget money is, and then we’re going to decide what we can do to help,” he said.

He said students have expressed concerns to SGA about the postponing of the SNAP program, so they are doing everything possible to address the issue.

“We see (SNAP) as something students definitely care about — something that they utilize — and one of our goals is improving campus safety and awareness, so that falls right under it,” said SGA President KeKoria Greer.

Freshman Tori Shaw said SNAP is important for making students feel at home on campus.

“It makes students feel safe on campus, and I think it’s definitely necessary, especially for freshman living on their own for the first time,” Shaw said. “It gives them a sense of comfort if they’re scared to walk across campus.”

Pastula said the people most affected by the program’s postponement are the student workers.

“We’ve had to rearrange schedules, take some dispatchers off the schedule, and replace them with officers,” Pastula said. “I have some absolutely dedicated workers, not only police officers, but SNAP workers who volunteer their time just to keep the campus safe.”

He said while grants help cover some costs, they are becoming harder to come by.

“We’re still moving along,” he said. “Nothing’s going to fall apart.”

Any student in need of an escort should contact the UNA Police Department at 256-765-4357, and an officer will be sent to drive the student to where he or she needs to go.