Marina Garrett, representing Students Saving the Crafts Center, came back tonight to briefly comment on the UCAB referendum that will increase student fees to alleviate some of UCEN’s debt. She pointed out that the referendum’s language doesn’t actually guarantee any money will go to reopening the Crafts Center, and argued that students should know exactly what they’re getting for their money. Hey, there’s a thought.
VP Student Life Cody Marshall later added that the referendum has been changed from a $13 increase to an $11 increase with 3-percent CPI, as per the recommendation of the Graduate Student Association.
SOVAC also made an encore appearance to talk to council about a project in the works — Organized Voter Access Link, or OVAL — which will provide an anonymous, online outlet for the student body to weigh in on A.S. Council referendums.
Campuswide Senator Matthew Mayeda and Co-Chair of the Well-being Cluster Student Advisory Board Pauline Nuth concluded special presentations with a much-anticipated overview of future changes to SHIP. Due to a complete clusterfuck in creating the undergraduate health plan, students are now facing increased fees and potential cutbacks to temper the UC system’s $49 million debt.
Mayeda informed council that with a March 1 deadline to make a decision, the news of such an enormous deficit was shocking.
“This was a surprise,” Mayeda said. “This deficit is not the students’ fault, and we should not be responsible for it.”
We sicklings at UCSD accrued 27 percent of the overall debt — the most, by far, of all the campuses due to a benefits plan that was priced too low. Mayeda also reported that there are several options to reduce the debt, including one that makes each UC campus responsible for its percentage of the deficit.
Nuth and Mayeda will be back with more information at a future council meeting. A.S. President Meggie Le reported that she would post a petition to encourage ideas for the transportation issue. Transportation Services will also host a town hall meeting next Tuesday, with more information to come.
AVP College Affairs Leonard Bobbitt provided a superb conclusion to this column as he was discussing the potential complications of an event he is sponsoring.
“I don’t know how rain works,” he said. “It might rain tomorrow, too.”
