A proposed transportation fee could replace student government funding for services such as Lane Transit District buses with a dedicated fee that would be overseen by faculty, staff and students.
The ASUO Senate voted Wednesday to support ASUO President Sam Dotters-Katz’s proposal to create an additional fee to finance the expansion of the 79x route, the bike loan program and campus shuttle services, as well as the continuation of existing LTD bus service.
Dotters-Katz estimated the fee could begin at around $25 per student per term and raise to $35 within a couple of years. LTD’s current contract with the ASUO costs each incidental fee-paying student about $15 per term. Dotters-Katz said he expects the fee to level out after a couple of years, and attributed the increase to a “rapid expansion” of transportation infrastructure that would fund more than LTD buses.
The proposal was spurred by LTD’s announcement this fall that it would discontinue 13 bus routes beginning in February, including several that serve the University campus. An LTD spokesman then requested an increase in the amount the University pays to bring buses to campus.
On Wednesday, the Senate passed a resolution supporting Dotters-Katz’s policy after little discussion of the resolution’s content, with every senator who participated in voting in favor of the resolution.
“This is the movement of nearly $1 million off the incidental fee and I was surprised that the Senate didn’t discuss it,” Dotters-Katz said. He added that he hoped the lack of discussion reflected approval of his policies rather than a reluctance to evaluate them.
The Senate discussed the LTD Resolution at several meetings in the fall, and many senators said they had discussed the issue enough to make a decision on Dotters-Katz’s policy.
“We’ve beaten it to death,” Sen. Emma Kallaway said.
Dotters-Katz said he was pleased by the support for his policy.
“This is one of the most important policy objectives of this administration,” he said.
Former ASUO Sen. Billy Hatch questioned the motives that led Dotters-Katz to create the resolution.
“Sam’s pandering to the administration without regard to the interests of students,” Hatch said.
Hatch objected to the lack of student input on the management of the transportation fee, which would be controlled not by the ASUO but by a student-faculty committee. Dotters-Katz ran on a platform that promised to reduce the incidental fee, which finances the ASUO. Hatch said that creating an additional fee for students to pay rendered that promise “fallacious.” He accused Dotters-Katz of taking control of University affairs out of the hands of students.
“Sam is talking out of both sides of his face,” Hatch said.
Dotters-Katz defended his motives and questioned the amount of leverage available to students under the current system. The LTD contract is currently overseen by the Athletics and Contracts Finance Committee. “At the moment, we really just have the power to say ‘yes’ to LTD,” he said.
Hatch blamed the need to expand bus service on the administration’s decision to move freshmen to Stadium Park Apartments in the Kinsrow neighborhood. Earlier in his term, Dotters-Katz proposed an hours extension for the 79x, which serves the Kinsrow area, in an attempt to ensure the safety of those freshmen. Hatch said the administration, not student fees, should pay for the new services. Dotters-Katz questioned such reasoning, saying the administration draws its money from students as well.
The resolution is on its way to the ASUO Constitution Court. The creation of the fee must be approved by the Oregon State Board of Higher Education.
For more ASUO coverage, go to the news blog at dailyemerald.com.
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