Three mandatory fees that passed in a referendum March 13 -14 willmake it to the desk of University President Stephen Weber forapproval.
The Campus Fee Advisory Committee, which gives advice to thepresident on mandatory fees, unanimously recommended on Friday thatWeber follow voting results and implement a new $15 fee to sustainStudent Health Services operations, a $22 fee to build a new healthcenter and a $10 fee to increase library hours.
“The pattern is pretty clear,” alternate committee member GordonShackelford said. “There is no defining reason to go differently.”
About 63 percent of students voted to help support SHS operationsand about 56 percent voted to help fund a new facility. Fifty-onepercent of students voted to increase library hours.
Students overwhelmingly rejected a $25 fee to provide scholarshipsto low-income students, a $15 fee to increase retention efforts andcultural enrichment activities, and $5 to provide scholarships tostudents studying abroad.
A total of 3,269 students voted, representing about 10 percent ofstudents on campus.
As in all cases of mandatory fee increases, Weber will decidewhether to institute the fees, which total $47. Both results from thestudent referendum results and CFAC’s recommendation will serve asadvice in Weber’s decision. California State University ChancellorCharles Reed makes the final decision on any new student fees.
Weber told the A.S. Council last week that he “fully expects” toaccept the results of the referendum.
On Friday, CFAC committee members questioned the appropriatenessof an e-mail sent out by the Financial Aid Office before thereferendum, advocating a “yes” vote on the $25 fee to providescholarships to low-income students.
Ken Perry, associate vice president for financial management,called the e-mail “unfortunate” and said anyone could have raised arequest to send one in opposition.
“This wasn’t the way the e-mail process was supposed to work,” hesaid.
A.S. President Ron Williams said he was concerned with theavailability of resources if students wanted to launch an oppositioncampaign.
For example, SHS spent $7,619 advocating a “yes” vote on its twofees, paid for out of SHS Director Kevin Patrick’s Foundation Fund.
“What about people who don’t agree with those fees?” Williamsquestioned. “We need to set aside funds so people can advocate theother way.”
