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Tuesday, September 30, 2003
Since 1900 University of Oregon Eugene, Oregon
Volume 105, Issue 23
Banking on books
As prices for new textbooks
rise, students are finding
ways to beat the costs
By Chuck Slothower
News Reporter
Sophomore Brian Fedor spent his
summer working at a San Diego re
sort to earn money for school. Last
week, a paycheck's worth of the 19
year-old's sweat and toil became
property of the LIniversity Book
store when Fedor spent $453.81 on
his fall term textbooks.
"It was pretty killer," Fedor said.
With the beginning of fall term
classes, University students face
sometimes dizzying textbook costs.
So much so that the University Of
fice of Financial Aid and Scholar
ships
budgets
_ $900 a
year per
student
for text
books
alone.
With the
financial
pain
comes
Monday: Various factors
drive up textbook prices
Today: How to pay less
for required reading
Wednesday: A
University group aims
to curb rising costs
the inevitable question: How can
students save money?
While many students simply buy
new books and swallow the cost,
others buy used books, share or
trade books with friends, shop on
line or use course reserves.
Fedor had his own plan.
"If I can find them cheaper, I'm
going to come back and return
these because that's a lot of money,"
Turn to TEXTBOOKS, page 5
Danielle Hickey Photographer
Cashiers Heather Zomke and Melanie Comimiti sell books to senior John Lucas at the University Bookstore on Friday.
Students have until Oct. 12 to return their textbooks to the bookstore for a full refund.
Bookstore gives away books
The University Bookstore is awarding
13 random students this week with
free course books for fall term
By Ayisha Yahya
News Editor
Sophomore Krystyn Hanselman finally had her
turn at the busy University Bookstore cash register
on Monday. As she handed over a check for $ 119,
the bookstore erupted in a chorus of noise and
Hanselman was surrounded by bookstore staff in
bright yellow shirts blowing on duck lips.
Bookstore General Manager Jim Williams then
gave her the good news: Hanselman was going to
get all her fall term course books for free.
The bookstore began giving away books to 13
students on Monday, and the give-away will con
tinue through tomorrow. Students are picked at
random times and are then notified of their award
after they pay for their books. The bookstore then
Turn to BOOKSTORE, page 10
Gas tax
to fund
repair
of roads
Eugene and neighboring cities
adopted a threeoent-per-gallon
gasoline tax that will help fund
$93 million in street repairs
By A. Sho Ikeda
Senior News Reporter
A ritywide gas tax that adds an additional
3 cents to every gallon of gasoline pure a
went into effect during the summer.
The funds raised by the per-gallon tax,
which was approved by ^e f.ugene aty
Council earlier this year, will be used to pay
for a 10-year backlog of street repairs esti
mated to cost $93 million. An esumated $2
million will come from the new gas tax^
Springfield and Cottage Grove have
also adopted local gas tax ordmances
and the taxes went into effect in all three
Clt meT-cent-per-gallon tax will be placed
on dealers who transport gasoline or
diesel fuel into the city for sale. Federal
state and local gas taxes paid by the deal
ers are usually passed along to retailers,
who typically add the amount to the pnee
of a gallon of gas at the pump.
Eugene Public Works Department
spokesman Eric Jones said the atywKl'
gas tax is necessary to repair many stre
m 'Tf we don't tackle this backlog, it will
eet bigger every year," Jones said. We
don't want to leave a legacy of detenorate
streets for future generations.'
Jones said the city has completed five
Turn to TAX, page 12
National do-not-call list s implementation remains uncertain
Oregon's do-not-call list was
decommissioned, but federal
agencies are working to push
the national list into effect
By Jared Paben
News Reporter
The future of the national do-not-call list re
mains in question after two federal
courts mled it unconstitu
tional just days before
it was slated to take
effect for approxi
mately 50 million
Americans.
The rulings, coupled with the decommission
ing of Oregon's do-not-call list in August, may
leave thousands of Oregonians without any pro
tection from telemarketers' solicitations.
But protection might not be as necessary now
as it was last week. On Sunday, the Direct Mar
keting Association — the nation's largest tele
marketing association representing more than
80 percent of companies making sales calls —
stated it would cease to call any numbers listed
in the national registry.
"Although we believe this is an in
appropriate role for the government, we don't
want to catch the American consumer in our cross
fire," DMA President H. Robert Wientzen said.
"We believe we should honor their wishes."
For the past week, the status of the national
list has changed daily. On Sept. 23, the first rul
ing by Judge Lee West found the Federal Trade
Commission did not have specific congressional
authority to implement the list, despite the fact
that lawmakers ordered the commission to pre
vent abusive telemarketing practices.
Two days later, Congress responded by quick
ly pushing through legislation giving the agency
specific authority to create and implement the
list. Seemingly, the problem was solved.
But later that day, the future of the list was
again called into question by a ruling from U S.
District Judge Edward Nottingham declaring the
list unconstitutional on other grounds: a viola
tion of free speech.
Turn to NO CALL, page 10
WEATHER
LOW
50
HIGH
78
INSIDE
Campus buzz.12 Crossword.11
Classifieds.10-11 Nation & World.3
Commentary..2 Sports.7
NEXT ISSUE
I Columnist Joseph
Bechard redirects
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