Editorial : Students should vote in referendum regarding NYPIRG next week
A referendum will appear on the ballot when students vote for Student Association president and comptroller next week on MySlice.
The campus chapter of the New York State Public Interest Group will ask students for their consent to directly receive $3 of everyone’s student activity fee. Collectively, this makes up part of the group’s budget to supplement money it raises each summer by going door-to-door.
NYPIRG is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization run entirely by students at New York state colleges and universities. The group works to keep local and state politicians accountable, carries out public awareness campaigns about various legislation and fights for students’ rights in Albany, among other programs.
For instance, the campus chapter runs legal clinics to help counsel students filing or collecting small claims from landlords. They have been educating the campus about hydrofracking, a divisive local issue that could incur negative environmental and health consequences on the one hand and economic benefits on the other. The group also employs a handful of students from various majors to get policy and public relations experience.
NYPIRG urges students to ask for their $3 back if they don’t want to give it to the organization. Students need only stop by their office above Faegan’s Café and Pub on South Crouse Avenue and ask for a $3 check.
In a mock vote among the 11 members of The Daily Orange Editorial Board, we voted to pass the referendum and give $3 of the student fee to NYPIRG by 7-4.
Those who consented thought the above student and public services were worth the relatively small payment.
Those who opposed giving the money said they didn’t reap any benefit from the organization. They said $12 over four years was too much and said they wished more was done on campus to inform students about the donation. They also suggested the referendum be on the ballot every year, as opposed to every three years.
The board encourages students, regardless of their views, to vote in the elections next week.
