Charging students an energy surcharge fee is not legal in Washington anymore, but students are still working to end the energy fee in Oregon.
A King County Superior Court judge ruled Nov. 9 that the University of Washington energy fee, which would have cost each student about $135 this year, amounted to a tuition increase. And under Washington law, tuition increases can only be authorized by the state legislature.
The university added the fee this year to compensate for rising energy costs. In August, Jasmin Weaver, a former Washington student president, filed a lawsuit against the school to remove the fee.
The university does not plan to appeal the ruling and will refund about $1.4 million, with interest, to its 22,204 students.
But it remains to be seen whether the Washington ruling will have any implications for students here.
“It’s such a great win, but we’re still not sure how it’s going to affect Oregon,” ASUO Vice President Joy Nair said.
Nair and ASUO President Nilda Brooklyn have been outspoken opponents of the fee because it was added without being approved by students.
Students involved in ASUO have been working with OSPIRG, the Ecological Design Center and other student groups to organize an energy conservation campaign, Nair said.
The group has met with University Provost John Moseley several times, and he has been very supportive of their efforts to lower the fee through energy conservation, she said.
“The coalition is growing exponentially in numbers,” Nair said. “And I think we have really proven to the administration that involving students initially in any process will greatly benefit the University and save money.”
John Wykoff, legislative director for the Oregon Student Association, said state differences in how tuition and fees are approved could affect whether the ruling will set a precedent for a similar ruling in Oregon.
In Washington, the legislature sets tuition, and the board of regents approves fees, he said. But in Oregon, the state board of higher education — Oregon’s equivalent to the board of regents — determines tuition and fees, he said.
The ruling does call into question charging a fee that pays for something previously included in tuition, such as energy costs, he said. But, he said, he couldn’t speculate on the likelihood of a similar outcome in Oregon because he had not seen a copy of the Washington ruling.
“Whether that’s legal in Oregon based on the decision in Washington, I don’t know,” he said.
OSA plans to study the Washington ruling, but has no plans to file a similar lawsuit at this time, he said.
Kevin Neely, a spokesman for Oregon Attorney General Hardy Myers, said no lawsuits to eliminate the energy fee are pending in Oregon.
The Washington ruling won’t affect the energy fee charged by the University, Moseley said. But, he added, University students may see their energy fees drop by next term.
“What we are doing right now is analyzing our energy costs … and looking at the possibility of lowering (the fee) for winter and spring terms,” he said.
Administrators initially estimated the fee would be about $30 per student each term. A decision on whether to lower the fee is likely to be reached within the next two weeks, Moseley said.
Next week, ASUO will kick off the conservation campaign with a dance in the EMU Ballroom, and will step up publicity to let students know what they can do to save energy, Nair said.