The Student Services Finance Committee denied funding eligibility for the University of Wisconsin Roman Catholic Foundation for the second time in two weeks Thursday.

The main contention in the debate was whether the organization had "completely and accurately filled out" the eligibility application, providing "proper written governing documents," such as bylaws, according to the SSFC Eligibility Evaluation.

The UWRCF bylaws appear to adhere specifically to Roman Catholic students, but the organization's members said they embrace students of any or no religious background.

"We want to have anybody," said UWRCF Director of Development Tim Kruse, adding the organization's bylaws are outdated and being modified to remove discriminatory language.

At the last meeting, the organization was denied because language in the group's bylaws, such as using the phrase "Roman Catholic" to describe the organization's students, were deemed "exclusionary."

The UWRCF has come before the SSFC four times in the past two weeks — twice in eligibility hearings and twice in open forums — to persuade the committee to grant it funding eligibility, but has been denied both times.

At Thursday's meeting, some members argued the bylaws are functional if the organization acts according to its own interpretation of these laws.

"There is no evidence of [UWRCF] being exclusionary," SSFC representative Tim Schulz said. "It is clearly an open organization."

Funding eligibility requires an organization to be open to all students.

At the meeting, UWRCF members of different or no religious backgrounds spoke of the acceptance of the organization and church, further demonstrating their services are not only for Roman Catholic students.

St. Paul's Catholic Church and the UWRCF work together to provide all students — regardless of religious background — with, among other services, spiritual mentoring, group Bible studies, inspirational guest speakers and a study center.

Adding to the debate over the past two weeks was the fact that UWRCF had recently amended its bylaws and removed the controversial phrase, "Roman Catholic students."

But the bylaws provided by the UWRCF in its eligibility application were unmodified.

The UWRCF provided changes to the SSFC, but because its formal application had already been turned in incomplete and inaccurate, the modifications could not be considered during the hearing, argued SSFC members.

UW student organizations come before the SSFC to determine whether, according to Associated Students of Madison bylaws and criteria, they will receive funding. With a roughly $900,000 budget each year and little money coming in from students in the organization, "SSFC provides important funding" for the UWRCF, said Kruse.

But this "important funding" will not be provided to the Roman Catholic Foundation.

Student organizations are reviewed every two years "to make sure documents are in line with practice," said SSFC representative Adam Schlicht, adding the UWRCF's bylaws, as they stand on its application, are not in line with its practices and therefore do not meet the criteria of the SSFC Eligibility Evaluation.

In the end, SSFC members voted to deny funding eligibility because representatives argued that the application, as it stood, was not complete because the UWRCF's bylaws did not coincide with its practices.

SSFC members remain confident with their decision even after such intense debate.

"Everybody took a really close look at the eligibility criteria," said SSFC member Zach Frey.

When asked about the UWRCF's future plans following the committee's decision, Kruse said it has exhausted the process for weeks now.

"We've got other jobs," Kruse said.