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Don’t say I didn’t warn you about this one … but you’re about to be taxed in a way you’re probably not used to and from a source you’ve probably never expected. Nevermind the IRS; they have nothing to do with this one. Forget the State Treasury; that is also out of the picture. This tax collector is much closer to you than you think; it’s lurking in your classrooms, it lives in your dorm … it may even be your roommate.
Your student government, made up of 31 students who you might know and like (or dislike), are about to tax the student body this Thursday (and I’m one of that 31). Now, you might be saying, “Why the hell are you taxing students?!?” This might sound crazy at first, but you might want to understand the process of a student tax before jumping to conclusions, because, after all, it’s a very different and unique process.
First off, this tax is more of a donation to student groups. Most of these student groups are essential to this campus and would not survive with these donations. Have you ever ridden the 80 bus up Observatory Drive? Have you ever lifted weights at the SERF? Have you ever gotten a free flu shot from UHS? If you’re like most students and have, then you have already benefited from these mandatory donations that I make on your behalf.
These essential services make up about 90 percent of the tax you pay as a student. The other 10 percent or so goes to other, smaller, student groups with different purposes. These groups range in function from promoting diversity education to keeping the streets safe. Each group has to justify to your student government the service they want to provide and we then give them money to match that effort … and yeah, it’s your money. We don’t look at the viewpoint the group is pushing, but just the service they want to provide.
This 10 percent of the tax is highly controversial. Sometimes people wonder whether or not a group really deserves funding to match their service, whether or not a group deserves more funding than it is already receiving, or whether or not identical groups should receive the same funding. In short, it’s all a bunch of questions that student reps need to answer; questions that in the past have gone answered without the input of the student body. I am asking everyone reading this message to end that trend and voice your concerns.
Consider this your fair warning … come talk to your student government reps and let us know what you think. The meeting will be on Thursday, Dec. 5 at 6:30 p.m., TITU (listed as ASM Student Council Meeting). There will be time to let you speak at the meeting to voice your concerns (called Open Forum). I challenge you all to come and speak and let us know what you think … after all, we’re here to represent you and reflect your beliefs.
Austin Evans ([email protected]) is a sophomore majoring in political science and the ASM Shared Governance Committee chairman.