What's happening
This bill requires SUNY, CUNY, and community colleges to increase transparency and student input regarding student activity fees, including regular referendums on whether such fees are mandatory or voluntary.
Why it matters
Gives students more control over their own fees. By requiring regular campus-wide votes on whether student activity fees should be mandatory or voluntary, the bill empowers students to have a direct say in whether they want to pay these fees—which can be a significant cost factor for some students.
Promotes transparency and accountability. The law mandates that all information about student activity fees—including how funds are allocated and which organizations receive support—must be posted online and easily accessible, making it harder for funds to be distributed without student awareness or input.
Protects student organizations from viewpoint discrimination. The bill specifically requires that funding decisions must be made fairly and without regard to an organization’s viewpoints, and establishes an appeals process for groups who believe they’ve been discriminated against, which could help protect free speech and diversity among student groups.
Standardizes student input and oversight. By requiring open forums for funding decisions and setting clear notification and accessibility standards for referendums, the bill aims to ensure that all students—not just a few—can participate in decisions about campus life and how their money is spent.
Albany, before your first meeting.
Every bill that moved yesterday, summarized in a sentence and ranked by impact. The Albany Scorecard follows on Sundays.
Free. Unsubscribe in one click. Want alerts on specific bills? Create an account.
Who cares
Headline styles
Let Students Vote on Fees
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
2 Co-sponsors
2 Multi-sponsors
History
- Referred to higher education
- Referred to higher education
Full text
4 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
232
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 5, 2017
Introduced by M. of A. GUNTHER, CRESPO, HOOPER -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. PERRY, RIVERA -- read once and referred to the Committee on Higher Education
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to student activity fees
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 355 of the education law is amended by adding a new subdivision 20 to read as follows:
20. Student activity fee. a. Disclosure. Every college or university of the state university shall conspicuously post on a publicly accessible website a notice regarding the student activity fee which shall include, but not be limited to: (1) the purpose of such fee, (2) the rules and procedures for the allocation of funds from such fee, (3) the name and mission statement of each student organization that received funding from such fee during the previous academic year, (4) the requirement that all funding decisions be made in an open forum where all students are given the opportunity to comment, (5) that all funding decisions shall be made in a fair and neutral manner without regard to the viewpoints of the organization requesting funding, and (6) that a referendum shall be held at least every two years the purpose of which is to determine whether the student activity fee shall be mandatory or voluntary.
b. Referendum. Prior to the close of the first full academic year immediately following the effective date of this subdivision, and at least once every two years thereafter, the student body at each college or university operated by the state university shall determine by referendum whether student activity programs shall be supported by either voluntary or mandatory student fees. Such referendum shall be conducted on campus at an easily accessible polling place or places and at such time as shall be convenient for the greatest number of students. Under no circumstances shall funding for any particular organization be deter-
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03654-01-7
A. 232 2
mined by referendum. Notice of such referendum shall be conspicuously posted at several locations on campus for not less than fifteen days prior to the date on which the referendum shall be conducted. Such notice shall include, but not be limited to, the date on which the referendum will be held, the times during which polling places will be open, the location of all polling places, and the question or questions before the student body.
c. Eligibility for funding. Any group that is officially recognized by the representative student organization in accordance with procedures established on each campus shall be eligible to receive funding from student activity fee proceeds.
d. Disbursement of funds. Proceeds of the student activity fee shall be disbursed by the representative student organization in a fair and neutral manner without regard to the viewpoints of the organization requesting funding. All funding decisions shall be made in an open forum where members of the student body are given an opportunity to comment.
e. Appeal of funding decisions. The representative student organization on each campus shall create an appeals process for registered student organizations complaining of viewpoint discrimination in the funding process. After exhausting student review, an aggrieved registered student organization may appeal to the chief administrative officer of each campus, or his or her designee.
§ 2. Section 6215 of the education law is amended by adding a new subdivision 4 to read as follows:
4. Student activity fee. a. Disclosure. Every college or university of the city university shall conspicuously post on a publicly accessible website a notice regarding the student activity fee which shall include, but not be limited to: (1) the purpose of such fee, (2) the rules and procedures for the allocation of funds from such fee, (3) the name and mission statement of each student organization that received funding from such fee during the previous academic year, (4) the requirement that all funding decisions be made in an open forum where all students are given the opportunity to comment, (5) that all funding decisions shall be made in a fair and neutral manner without regard to the viewpoints of the organization requesting funding, and (6) that a referendum shall be held at least every two years the purpose of which is to determine whether the student activity fee shall be mandatory or voluntary.
b. Referendum. Prior to the close of the first full academic year immediately following the effective date of this subdivision, and at least once every two years thereafter, the student body at each college or university operated by the city university shall determine by referendum whether student activity programs shall be supported by either voluntary or mandatory student fees. Such referendum shall be conducted on campus at an easily accessible polling place or places and at such time as shall be convenient for the greatest number of students. Under no circumstances shall funding for any particular organization be determined by referendum. Notice of such referendum shall be conspicuously posted at several locations on campus for not less than fifteen days prior to the date on which the referendum shall be conducted. Such notice shall include, but not be limited to, the date on which the referendum will be held, the times during which polling places will be open, the location of all polling places, and the question or questions before the student body.
c. Eligibility for funding. Any group that is officially recognized by the representative student organization in accordance with procedures
A. 232 3
established on each campus shall be eligible to receive funding from student activity fee proceeds.
d. Disbursement of funds. Proceeds of the student activity fee shall be disbursed by the representative student organization in a fair and neutral manner without regard to the viewpoints of the organization requesting funding. All funding decisions shall be made in an open forum where members of the student body are given an opportunity to comment.
e. Appeal of funding decisions. The representative student organization on each campus shall create an appeals process for registered student organizations complaining of viewpoint discrimination in the funding process. After exhausting student review, an aggrieved registered student organization may appeal to the chief administrative officer of each campus, or his or her designee.
§ 3. Section 6304 of the education law is amended by adding a new subdivision 1-a to read as follows:
1-a. Student activity fee. a. Disclosure. Every community college shall conspicuously post on a publicly accessible website a notice regarding the student activity fee which shall include, but not be limited to: (1) the purpose of such fee, (2) the rules and procedures for the allocation of funds from such fee, (3) the name and mission statement of each student organization that received funding from such fee during the previous academic year, (4) the requirement that all funding decisions be made in an open forum where all students are given the opportunity to comment, (5) that all funding decisions shall be made in a fair and neutral manner without regard to the viewpoints of the organization requesting funding, and (6) that a referendum shall be held at least every two years the purpose of which is to determine whether the student activity fee shall be mandatory or voluntary.
b. Referendum. Prior to the close of the first full academic year immediately following the effective date of this subdivision, and at least once every two years thereafter, the student body at each community college shall determine by referendum whether student activity programs shall be supported by either voluntary or mandatory student fees. Such referendum shall be conducted on campus at an easily accessible polling place or places and at such time as shall be convenient for the greatest number of students. Under no circumstances shall funding for any particular organization be determined by referendum. Notice of such referendum shall be conspicuously posted at several locations on campus for not less than fifteen days prior to the date on which the referendum shall be conducted. Such notice shall include, but not be limited to, the date on which the referendum will be held, the times during which polling places will be open, the location of all polling places, and the question or questions before the student body.
c. Eligibility for funding. Any group that is officially recognized by the representative student organization in accordance with procedures established on each campus shall be eligible to receive funding from student activity fee proceeds.
d. Disbursement of funds. Proceeds of the student activity fee shall be disbursed by the representative student organization in a fair and neutral manner without regard to the viewpoints of the organization requesting funding. All funding decisions shall be made in an open forum where members of the student body are given an opportunity to comment.
e. Appeal of funding decisions. The representative student organization on each campus shall create an appeals process for registered student organizations complaining of viewpoint discrimination in the funding process. After exhausting student review, an aggrieved regis-
A. 232 4
tered student organization may appeal to the chief administrative officer of each campus, or his or her designee.
§ 4. This act shall take effect on the first of August next succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.