Carleton University Ancillary Fee Referenda

Question: CUSA Student Levy

This question is being posed to undergraduate students.

Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA) represents and advocates for the needs of undergraduate students by providing essential services, programming, and opportunities for involvement. CUSA currently operates six service centres, the Unified Support Centre, and student-run businesses such as Ollie’s, Rooster’s, and The Wing. Additionally, CUSA administers the Health and Dental Plan and provides funding for over 275 certified undergraduate clubs.

Currently, the CUSA fee is one of the lowest student union fees in the province. The existing fee is no longer sufficient to maintain current services and programming levels due to rising costs from inflation and operational expenses. Without a levy increase, there will be further reductions in CUSA’s services such as free printing, service centers, subsidized prices at student run businesses, and funding for student run initiatives. CUSA is proposing a $22.68 increase to the student levy fee to ensure CUSA’s services can continue to support you.

Question:

To ensure CUSA’s services continue without further reductions, do you support an increase of $22.68 per term of the CUSA student levy (pro-rated for part-time students), indexed to Consumer Price Index, starting in fall 2025.

Question: Mike’s Place Levy

This question is being posed to graduate students.

Mike’s Place Pub has been an important historic and cultural hub for graduate students and the Carleton community since its founding in 1972. Although the Graduate Students Association (GSA) provides various services, it currently does not have a levy specifically for Mike’s Place. This lack of funding has affected the overall GSA operational budget, making the existence of Mike’s Place precarious.

This levy fee will enable the GSA to operate the pub at full capacity, ensuring it remains accessible to all community members. The GSA is dedicated to enhancing graduate student engagement on campus and improving the services offered by Mike’s Place.

Question:

Do you support a $7 per term fee, indexed to the Consumer Price Index, for the GSA to fund Mike’s Place, starting in Fall 2025?

Question: School of Industrial Design Computer Fee

This question is being posed to undergraduate students in the Bachelor of Industrial Design program.

The School of Industrial Design Computer Fee for the Bachelor of Industrial Design program was established to help collectively pay for computer resources shared by undergraduate School of Industrial Design students and includes the cost of licensing software for Solidworks and KeyShot studio; upgrades for and maintenance of computing hardware and software; the cost of some equipment and parts, such as Wacom tablets and network equipment; providing free access to the 3D printers in the Maker Space; supporting new technological initiatives and innovations within the School of Industrial Design, and other essential technological infrastructure that enhances your learning experience.

The Computer Fee was last increased to $95 from $70 per year in 2011 and has remained unchanged since that time. However, as technology evolves and the demand for advanced computing resources grows, the costs associated with maintaining and upgrading these resources have significantly increased and are no longer sustainable. Consequently, the School of Industrial Design needs to adjust the Computer Fee (renamed to Technology Fee) to ensure it can continue providing students with the best possible tools and facilities.

Therefore, the School of Industrial Design is seeking the following outcomes with this referendum: a $35 increase to the existing $95 (annual) Technology Fee for the Bachelor of Industrial Design program to support technology costs (for a total of $130 annually), the equal splitting of the $130 fee between fall and winter semesters, to allow for equal billing, and for the $130 fee to be assessed for both full- and part-time students.

Question:

To ensure that technology resources shared by Bachelor of Industrial Design students remain available and technologically relevant, do you support a $35 increase to the existing $95 Technology Fee for the Bachelor of Industrial Design program (totaling $130 annually)?

This would also entail the School of Industrial Design splitting the $130 fee into two equal payments of $65, to be charged in the fall and winter term, and assessing the fee for both full- and part-time students. The $130 fee would be tied to the Consumer Price Index and effective September 2025.

Voting

Voting days will be held on Tuesday, March 11, 2025, and Wednesday, March 12, 2025. Voting will be held online, and all ballots will be conducted electronically and sent to students’ University-issued email (cMail) account as appropriate.

Campaign Period

The campaign period will begin on Monday, February 24, 2025, at noon (12:00 p.m.), with the last day of campaigning ending on Monday, March 10, 2025 at 11:59 p.m.

Committee Registration Period

The CEO is inviting those interested in participating in a YES or NO committee regarding the upcoming CUSA Student Levy referenda (undergraduate students, the upcoming Mike’s Place Levy referenda (graduate students), and the upcoming School of Industrial Design Computer Fee to register as part of their chosen committee by email to the CEO (melaniechapman@cunet.carleton.ca) no later than Friday, February 21, 2025, at 11:59 p.m.

Note: There shall be only one YES committee and one NO committee for each referendum question and no more than 1/4 of the total YES or NO committee membership can be non-students. A public debate will be scheduled if there are both YES and NO committees for each referendum question.

Each committee will also require a Chair, to act as a liaison with the CEO.

Student Referendum Procedures

The student referendum procedures document (pdf, 60kb) describes the process for the conduct of a referendum concerning the approval of an increase in ancillary fees. This protocol applies to these referenda, with one procedural change, which was proposed by the Ombudsperson and accepted by the Ancillary Fee Committee. The procedural change pertains to the review and adjudication of violations and is explained in more detail at the end of the protocol.

More Information

For more information, please review the official 2025 writ of election for the Carleton University Ancillary Fee Referenda.

• Writ of Election for the CUSA Student Levy (pdf, 115kb)
• Writ of Election for the Mike’s Place Levy (pdf, 114kb)
• Writ of Election for the School of Industrial Design Computer Fee (pdf, 121kb)

All enquiries or concerns regarding the referendum, campaigning, polling process, and conduct should be referred to the CEO via email.