SU argues against BoG proposal to deregulate non-instructional fees

Recent motions on the part of the University of Alberta’s Board of Governors have provoked a move by the Students’ Union to push for provincial regulation of mandatory non-instructional fees.

Although the SU has been in talks with the Ministry of Advanced Education and Technology for three years regarding non-instructional fees, they were told by Minister Greg Weadick to work out a solution with the U of A — a conversation that’s hit a standstill.

“We’ve had a long discussion and have hit a point of fundamental disagreement, where the Students’ Union believes these fees need to go to student approval mechanism, and the institution believes that they don’t,” said SU President Rory Tighe.

“The latest (development) is worse than just not allowing student approval — it’s actually deregulating these fees even more from an institutional perspective.”

The Board of Governors currently follows a policy that any time an increase to a non-instructional fee is proposed that is above inflation, student referendum or students’ council approval must be sought.

“Administration is actually moving to take away that motion later this semester,” Tighe said. “So my proposal is to not only keep that motion in place, but also extend it (so that) the creation of new fees must get that approval.”

Most non-instructional fees, such as the U-Pass and the Student Services Fee, generally provide funds for non-instructional items that add value to students’ university experience.

“We believe that all non-instructional fees should be dealt with through that process, to make sure that students actually want it,” Tighe said. “Non-instructional fees should not be core to the institution, but should again be something that is added value.”

However, if the Board of Governors passes the motion to deregulate non-instructional fees, the SU is concerned that fees like the controversial Common Student Space, Sustainability, and Services (CoSSS) fee may become a method used by the university to make up for caps on tuition increases.

“I can’t imagine the minister being okay with deregulating the fees even more from an institutional perspective,” Tighe said. “The ministry should regulate these fees from a provincial stance.”

Weadick said there have been plenty of non-instructional fees that students have paid, but over the past couple years, some particularly troubling ones have popped up.

“(Some institutions) have put in some non-instructional fees that appear to me to not reflect a real service, but are imposed to bypass the tuition caps,” Weadick said.

“We at the ministry do not support those, we do not believe that is an appropriate action, and that’s why we’ve moved forward here to look at some options on how we can deal with them and what kind of policies might work in the future for those types of fees.”

When approached with the issue of non-instructional fees, Weadick asked all the universities, colleges, and technical institutes in Alberta to come back to him in a month, after meeting and conferring with students, with policy recommendations to deal with the fees.

“The students have said it’s probably their most important issue to deal with,” Weadick said. “They want to make sure that education remains acceptable and affordable, and so do we.”

As of right now, there is no provincial legislation concerning non-instructional fees. Regulations are held at a university level, allowing institutions the ability to implement new fees as they see fit.

Representatives from the Board of Governors declined to provide comment, as the move to further deregulate non-instructional fees will not be decided until the Feb. 10 meeting.

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