Wednesday, February 24, 1999
Proposal will increase fees, funding for projects
REFERENDUM: Supporters hope student government will place plan
on ballots
By Barbara Ortutay
Daily Bruin Staff
A proposed fee increase to pay for the completion of the
university’s Student Services Master Space Plan may be added to
this spring’s Undergraduate Students Association Council (USAC) and
Graduate Students Association (GSA) ballots.
Each student government must approve the proposed referendum in
order for it to appear on the upcoming ballots.
If the proposal is put up for consideration by the student body,
students will vote on whether to increase annual student fees by
$90 beginning with the 2002-03 school year.
This money would be used to pay for a five-part construction
plan that includes additions to the John Wooden Center, renovations
of the Men’s Gymnasium and repairs of the Sunset Canyon Recreation
Center.
At Tuesday evening’s USAC meeting, President Stacy Lee said she
will appoint a committee to discuss the proposal.
"We will be talking about this for the rest of the quarter," she
said.
"With the complexity of this issue, we are going to have to
appoint an ad hoc committee, not just dealing with the referendum,
but also the implementation," she added.
The constitutions for GSA and USAC outline two different
procedures for the passage of ballot referenda.
While USAC may directly vote to place a referendum on the
ballot, the GSA constitution requires a petition signed by graduate
students.
"The passage of this proposal is in the hands of students," said
GSA Vice President Internal Meredith Neuman. "In terms of this fee
increase, I don’t think it will be very popular."
A total of 20 percent of undergraduate and graduate students
must vote in the elections for the ballot proposal to count, and
the proposal needs to be passed by a majority.
In last year’s USAC and GSA elections, a little over 12 percent
of students turned out to vote.
"I’m not looking for USAC to support or favor this proposal,
just to put it on the ballot and allow students to make a
decision," said Robert Naples, assistant vice chancellor of student
and campus life.
The proposal for the construction project, called Student
Programs, Activities and Resources Complex (SPARC), would result in
the relocation of several campus facilities. SPARC plans to move
the Women’s Resource Center – which is currently located in the
basement of Dodd Hall – and Student Psychological Services, which
now has locations in the Math Sciences Building and the Center for
Health Sciences.
Naples presented the proposal to USAC on Tuesday, and said he
will return in two weeks, when he hopes the council will vote to
place the referendum on the ballot for student consideration.
According to the SPARC fee proposal, the administration is
pushing to pass the fee increase and begin construction as soon as
possible because of funding reasons.
The $51 student union fee is due to roll back to $7.50 just as
the $90 SPARC fee would take effect, resulting in a net fee
increase of $43.50.
Naples said the timing of the SPARC proposal is also linked to a
Federal Emergency Management Agency project to renovate the Men’s
Gym.
One of the main concerns USAC has, according to Lee, is the
amount of input students will have in the use of their fees.
"The ability of students to have strong input in the use of the
space is important," she said.
Naples said that if the proposed referendum is passed, students
will have representation on the project’s planning committee.
In addition, once the project is completed, a student majority
board would be established to develop policies for SPARC.
The Student Fee Advisory Committee, which is the only student
committee providing input on the use of mandatory student fees, has
not yet taken an official stance on the proposal.
The committee will hear an official presentation at its meeting
today.BEN SCHWARTZ
Bob Naples, assistant vice-chancellor of campus and student
life, presents a proposal to USAC. The plan would raise student
fees to fund a new program of improvements on campus.
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