Editorial
Budgeting by ballot
raises student fees
The recent ASUO elections brought a significant fiscal
and procedural problem into clearer focus. Students, pro
grams and departments chose to take a large portion of the
incidental fee budget directly to the voters.
This "cafeteria budgeting" works well for occasional
special allocations, but is generally an irresponsible fiscal
management device.
Measures to fund the Counseling Center, United States
Student Association. Marching Band. Oregon Daily Emerald
and OSPIRG won. This created about $300,000 in student
fees, including several increases. Had either of the athletics
funding measures won. well over $1 million would have
been allocated by initiative or referendum.
This would have left the Incidental Fee Committee,
which supposedly oversees the entire budget package,
voting on only half of the budget.
The IFC exists to provide a broad view of the budget and
to make decisions with this view in mind. "Cafeteria
budgeting" renders the IFC next to useless.
Next year’s process may see any group that can muster
the votes choose to gather signatures for an initiative rather
than go through budget hearings. This will result in steadily
increasing fees, because fiscal measures taken individually
do not necessarily appear excessive.
Tuition has increased from $211 to $388 — 84 percent
— since 1979. The incidental fee has increased from $36.50
to $61.00 — 67 percent — during the same period.
This constant fee increase must stop. Students cannot
afford to pay higher fees.
ASUO leaders who lobby for a tuition freeze are ad
dressing only part of the cost of attending the University.
They should work to hold down the incidental fee as well.
Some of the fee increase is a consequence of a substan
tial increase in 1980 of the portion of the fee that supports in
tercollegiate athletics. But the "athletics fee” is only part of
the problem
Increases occur in part because certain EMU costs such
as labor are difficult to keep down and are not under EMU or
student control. Increases also occur in part because neither
the IFC nor the voting student body is able to vote "no"
often enough.
The latter problem is getting worse due to a combina
tion of ASUO Constitution Court decisions and student
dissatisfaction with the IFC.
The Court has ruled that groups such as the Emerald
and the athletic department can go on the ASUO ballot by
initiative. This means that in practice any student group that
can obtain about 800 signatures can place a budget request
on the ballot.
Groups should try to raise more money from their own
constituents instead of relying on fee allocations. Fees take
money from student pockets just as surely as donations to
groups do.
Incoming ASUG officials should examine why the pro
blem of rapidly increasing incidental fees has come about.
They should also analyze the causes of more items going on
the ballot.
They should develop a comprehensive plan to retain
student rights of initiative while regaining control of in
creasing fees and fragmented allocation processes.
If ASUO leaders do not act soon to bring the fee monster
under control, students will begin using existing processes
to force cutbacks and limitations. Responsible fiscal
management that holds the line on fees will avoid this risk.
Oregon Daily
Emerald
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Neglected facts
I simply cannot stay quiet
after the presentation by Mrs.
Allende on “Chile’s reality" on
Wednesday. April 16. For most
students and Americans in
general, Chile's history seems
to start in 1973. after the
military overthrew the govern
ment of Salvador Allende.
Mrs. Allende has been away .
from Chile for 13 years, which
seems to make her see things
quite differently. For most
Chileans, it is clear today that
we got the military thanks to the
mess created during Ailende's
three years in office. ...
Some facts Mrs. Allende
hasn't and will never present in
her speeches:
By 1973, Chile had an infla
tion over 300 percent, a fiscal
deficit of 45 percent over the
total expenditure of the national
treasury and a decline in the in
dustrial production of six per
cent compared to 1972.
I was 12 years old when I had
to stay in line for hours to have
access to a supermarket to get
some groceries (a situation that
didn't affect people belonging
to Ailende's party;. they had
“special stores" and “special
access.”) Classes in school were
suspended constantly because
of riots and protests against
Ailende's policies. The country
was full of hate and confusion.
We needed and asked for a
change.
Today, Chile's political and
economic standing is far from
ideal. We do want real
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democracy and economic
.stability, but I can assure Mrs.
A Monde and her followers that
we in Chile do not need or want
another "Popular Unity." Chile
needs, to and will stand firm
again, without the help of old
formulas that didn't.work In the
past. *• ’
Half Oberti
Chilean
Limited view
Dear Mr. Duffy.
As a student, a musician, and
a person under 35 years of age. I
fpel compelled to respond to
your letter. . ..
Contrary to your miniscule
perceptions, many students are”
interested in classical music.
That this university houses one
of the larger schools of music in
the Pacific Northwest is
evidence of this. Your next
statement, "college radio sta
tions are supposed to be for the
student body,” can be disputed
also.
First, the fact stated above
seems ° to illustrate a self
» contradiction in your argument.
Second, college stations may be
seen as having several func
tions. Serving the community
which houses the University in
some cultural capacity is one
service KWAX performs, and
° providing a format which
would otherwise be absent from
the Eugene-Springfield area is
another such service.
There are several radio sta
tions which program rock
music in Eugene, as well as a
station which programs
primarily jazz and other types of
ethnic music. There is one
country station I know of,
although I admit I don’t listen to
it. It does not require a great
deal of intelligence to find these
stations, but if you have trouble.
someone wiirhelp.you.'
I also from a largo
metropolitan area (Washington ,
D.C.-—. perhaps, you've hoard of
it), and I have found Eugene to '
Ire surprisingly full of a variety
of cultural outlets fora city of its .
. size; . ’ ; • •
; Please; in the future, show uis
some of: the, intelligence you;
were born with as you haven't °
so far. .'•••'•• • . •*•
Beniamin Tomeaaetti ..
, 'k Graduate, Music
Resistance
Thousands of llopi and Nava- •
ja;~mainly“traditional;-live~in~ ,
the Four.Corners area of New
Mexico. Arizona. Utah and Col- .
oradp. However. ' 10,OOO:;to
20.(NX) of these self-sufficient
peoples who raise crops and
herd sheep are being threatened
with a possible forced reloca
tion off of their homeland com
ingJuly 8. 1986, because of P.L- °
93-531. " „
The government and privaje
interests such as Peabody Coal
and others have found a wealth
and abundance of oil. gas and .
coal underneath these people’s
feet. According to P.L.. 93-531.
these people are to be moved off
so these resources can be ex- -
plotted in this “National
Sacrifice Area.” • .. .
Of course, the Navajo and
Hopi have refused to be moved
off and will resist. Please help
prevent any further conflict bet
ween the government and these
people by writing your senators
and representatives to repeal
P.L. 93-531. The livelihood of
these Indian peoples is being
threatened.
Guy Prouty
Anthropology
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