The fate of the SAFE Nighttime Services — which provide escort, cab, and bus services for UW students — has been in limbo over the past semester as UW Transportation Services and the Associated Students of Madison squabble over who should be paying for such services.
While this board strongly believes that the segregated fee system amounts to welfare for student organizations who have no problems padding their pockets with the hard-earned dollars of the student body, we feel that out of all seg-fee-funded groups, SAFE Nighttime Services is among the few that have the potential to benefit everyone on campus. The same cannot be said of others.
Earlier this semester, when the Student Services Finance Committee debated the funding for SAFEwalk, they cut half of the budget from the program. They left the budget for SAFEcab alone.
Last week, SSFC's budgets received final approval from ASM. But instead of rubber-stamping the budgets of these organizations like they did to most groups, ASM zero-funded SAFEcab after UW Transportation Services announced they would no longer continue to subsidize the program in the next year and a half.
SAFEwalk, as well, suffered from ASM's red pen, and was zeroed out. Luckily, UW Transportation Services decided to pick up the tab.
Both UW Transportation Services and ASM need to realize that the vitality of the SAFE Nighttime Services program depends on the existence of all three services. Together, the service is economically efficient and decreases the overall cost of the program.
If students truly had a choice in the matter, we feel confident they would chose to continue using segregated fees to fund the SAFEcab program. However, that choice has been left to ASM and the erratic whims of SSFC.
We urge ASM to reconsider the funding decision in regard to SAFEwalk and SAFEcab.
With the outrageous budgets of organizations that cater to a select few approved with little more than lip service to fiscal responsibility, how can ASM claim to represent all students when one of the few truly all-campus initiatives has been killed by their own hand?