Duke Student Government has elected to lower the proposed increase of the student activities fee from $50 a year to $30 a year over the course of two years. The DSG Senate voted to change the course of the Sept. 15 referendum at their meeting Wednesday night.
"My concern is that students who are not involved with student groups would be less likely to pass something like this," said DSG President Jordan Giordano, a senior.
An increase in fees will lead to an additional $360,000 in financing. Because the money will only be enough to launch one of the three originally proposed initiatives-a campus-wide car-rental service, a full-time legal attorney for students and a bus tracking system-the Senate voted largely in favor of hiring a legal aid.
"That's what we thought students wanted the most, and primarily because it's the only thing the student activities fee can pay for," said Executive Vice President Kantha, a senior. "Based on the DSG representatives and what we've heard from the student body, students really need this."
If the referendum passes based on the new proposal, the student activities fee will increase from the current $222 per year to $252 for the 2009-2010 academic year, and then jump to $282 for the 2010-2011 academic year. The initial proposal suggests increasing the current fee by $50 per year, or a total of $100.
"This is a step in the right direction," said Duke University Union President Chamindra Goonewardene, a senior, who has spoken out against the initial proposal. "We need to make sure it's done right-think smart and not think quick."
Goonewardene attended the DSG meeting to counter the fee increase and said that as elected representatives, campus leaders should ensure that all decisions are made in students' best interest. Kantha said Goonewardene's speech was the "breaking point" after week-long talks, and criticisms, of the proposal.
The legal service is budgeted to cost $150,000 a year. The remaining $210,000 from the increase will go to the Student Organization Finance Committee, of which a portion will go toward doubling the current $100,000 Programming Fund pending a Senate vote, Giordano said. The Programming Fund provides student programming grants based on applications throughout the year, and SOFC provides funding to student groups on an annual basis from a separate Annual Budget.
In addition to increased funding for student groups overall, plans are in place to decrease funding for the Chanticleer gradually by $75,000 over the course of three years. The yearbook is currently SOFC's largest expenditure, with a budget of $134,850 of the total $623,325 in DSG's Annual Budget. DSG representatives also said finances run low by March every year, and the Chanticleer uses more than all club sports or cultural groups combined, adding that most other universities do not fund yearbooks.
Giordano said the Monday date of the referendum was not changed because it has been publicized to this point. Kantha added that DSG did not want to separate the referendum from the ballot for freshman elections, which also take place Monday.
Other DSG representatives noted that an early decision will allow for more time to plan finances, and enough time must be allotted to determine alternatives if the referendum does not pass.
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