At their meeting last month in San Francisco, the UC regents retroactively approved over $6 million in benefit payments that had been criticized in both internal and independent audits for their lack of public disclosure and proper approval. The regents reasoned that for nearly all 140 employees addressed at the meeting, it would be improper to ask for the return of the money. “We don’t feel that we can ethically do anything but honor those commitments,” Regent Judith Hopkinson said at the meeting. This rationale is disappointing, to say the least.

It’s one thing to give belated approval to valid payments that would have been approved anyway. It’s quite another to approve the payouts because it would be uncomfortable to ask for the money back. The demands for transparency and accountability in the upper echelons of the University of California stem from one fear: that the state’s money is being misspent, and the regents’ decision does nothing to alleviate that worry.

This summer, UCSD Chancellor Marye Anne Fox agreed to credit back $248,000 for a paid sabbatical she had earned at North Carolina State University, a payment which had come under scrutiny for its lack of transparency. Let’s hope that the rest of the recipients are of similar moral fiber.

And even though it has been almost a year since this debacle first came to light, there has been precious little resolution. Who was at fault for the lack of oversight? And more importantly, what has been done to prevent this from happening again? Dynes presented a number of ideas at the regents’ meeting. Now let’s see some action.