By George Fujii Daily Bruin Staff Next week, undergraduates will
decide whether facilities expansions and supporting two student
lobby groups are worth an increase in mandatory student fees. The
Student Programs, Activities and Resource Complex referendum would
increase fees by $28 per student per quarter to fund expansion of
the Wooden Center and the Men’s Gym. A less expensive version
of SPARC ($18 per student per quarter) failed in last year’s
Undergraduate Students Association Council elections. The United
States Students Association and the University of California
Students Association referendum would increase student fees $2 per
student per quarter to support these student advocacy
organizations. Both measures have been approved for the May 10-11
ballot by USAC, though SPARC has triggered lively debate at several
council meetings. The Men’s Gym was damaged in the 1994
Northridge earthquake. Since UCLA has Federal Emergency Management
Agency funds to repair this damage, administrators thought this was
a good time to make other changes to the gym and Wooden. These
non-seismic renovations will be funded by SPARC. Specifically,
SPARC will provide space for outreach groups, provide additional
recreation space in Wooden, and allow some student services to move
back to the center of campus. USAC President Mike de la Rocha said
SPARC would benefit students. “A lot of the groups in
Men’s Gym are in vital need of more space,” he said.
Not all council members, though, favor SPARC. Steve Davey, USAC
facilities commissioner, said the referendum is too expensive and
unfair because future students will be the ones bearing the cost.
“I don’t think it’s right to raise fees for
students that aren’t even here yet,” Davey said.
“SPARC is needless and it costs too much.” Davey was
the only council member to vote against placing SPARC on the
ballot. Also, to better reflect its purpose, the Men’s Gym
would be renamed the “Student Activities Center,”
unless a donor can be found for the building. When USAC approved
SPARC on April 25, it was concerned about where to house offices
during construction and the possibility for costs to increase.
USAC, however, as a condition of its approval, asked the university
to pay for any additional costs which might occur if interest rates
rise or construction costs rise, and to resolve an issue with
finding temporary homes for offices. “There is not adequate
staging at this point in time for all the student groups in the
Men’s Gym,” said Bob Naples, assistant vice chancellor
of student and campus life, at the April 25 meeting. USAC members
questioned whether not passing SPARC would solve this problem,
which Naples disagreed with. “If the referendum was not
proposed or defeated, programs would still be staged,” Naples
said. “To a certain extent, it’s irrelevant.” He
added that the university has up to 14 months to solve the problem
before staging must occur. Council members were also concerned that
the SPARC fee could rise because of changing interest rates or cost
overruns on the project. Potentially students could pay more (worst
case, 50 percent more) or less (best case, $22-23 per student per
quarter). This is because the $28 fee is based on a 6.5 percent
interest rate for the bonds which will finance the project, said
John Sandbrook, assistant provost of the College of Letters and
Science. But Jerry Mann, director of the student union for the
Associated Students of UCLA, said that since the bonds are issued
at the beginning of the project, students would pay more only if
interest rates rose within 6 to 12 months from now.
“You’re really only gambling on about a year from
now,” Mann said. “I’d be more concerned about the
cost of the project.” Construction delays could require
students to pay more, which was another concern for USAC members,
given the pace of other recent campus construction projects.
“It seems to me that students are paying most of this … and
we could be left holding the bill,” Davey said. USAC members
asked Naples to guarantee a flat fee for students. Naples said such
a guarantee would be unrealistic. He added that an increase in the
SPARC fee is unlikely given that administrators have carefully
calculated the cost of the project. “There has been every
opportunity to build in cost-overruns on the project,” Naples
said. USAC also approved the USSA/UCSA referendum, which was
originally two separate proposals. In addition to providing a
stable funding source for these organizations, the referendum would
free up USAC general funds. USSA is a Washington, DC-based student
advocacy group. UCSA is a statewide student advocacy group with
members from all of the UC schools. Members of the USAC external
vice president’s office, which works with USSA and UCSA, said
the referendum was vitally needed. “Right now, we don’t
have enough money to pay for travel out of budget,” said
External Vice President Liz Geyer. “Programming money has
been stagnant for a long time because the general USAC fee
hasn’t increased.” Other council members were not so
positive about the referendum. Davey said the fee was wrong in
principle and in practice. “I am opposed to earmarking fees
to off-campus student groups,” Davey said. “I hope that
it fails.” He added that he and other students object to some
of the policies of the two organizations. A major change from
earlier versions of the referendum is that students will review the
fee every four years. If a majority of students do not approve the
fee’s continuance, it will disappear.
REFERENDA FOR THE 2000-2001 USAC PRIMARY
ELECTION On May 10 and 11, undergraduate students will
vote on two referenda which would increase their mandatory student
fees. Student Programs, Activities, and Resource Complex
(SPARC) Amount – $28 per student per
quarter Why – Expand and renovate the Men’s Gym
and the Wooden Center, so that campus groups such as the Women’s
Resource Center, and Student Psychological Services, can have more
space. Fee increase would not take affect until after construction
is complete (estimated 2004). Note: While the fee
could be reduced after construction debt is paid off, the fee will
remain indefinitely to pay for maintenance of the expanded
buildings. USSA and UCSA Referendum
Amount – $2 per person per quarter ($0.19 stays on
campus to fund travel by UCLA representatives to USSA and UCSA;
$0.91 goes to UCLA membership in USSA; $0.90 goes to UCSA
membership). Why – Support the United States
Student Association and the University of California Student
Association by increasing UCLA’s contribution to these groups.
Note: Passing this referendum would free up about
$31,900 a year in general USAC funds which currently pay for USSA
and UCSA membership dues. These funds could then be allocated to
student groups by USAC. SOURCE: USAC Primary election ballot and
supplemental information Web graphic by LEAH SWALLEY