1. The issue
   1. Campus-based fees
   2. Student Activities and Services Initiative
   3. Campus Expansion Initiative
2. How a referendum happens
   1. Council on Student Affairs and Fees
   2. The process
3. Student support for athletics
4. Benefits of athletics
5. Fiscal issues of referendum passage
6. News about athletics
7. Questions and answers

1. The Issue 

Two potential student fee referendums propose to ask undergraduates if they want to discontinue paying the portions of two campus-based fees — the Campus Expansion Initiative and the Student Activities and Services Initiative — that provide significant support to Intercollegiate Athletics, or ICA. The ballot measures have significant implications for the Athletics program and beyond. Sponsors are working to put the referendums on the ballot for the Associated Students of UC Davis, or ASUCD, spring election May 9 to 12. 

•  Campus-based fees

• Most campus-based fees are generated through a student-involved vote. At UC Davis, programs and facilities that receive support from campus-based fees include the ASUCD, Unitrans, the Activities and Recreation Center, the Memorial Union, the Student Recruitment and Retention Center, and some student activities in sustainability. Published fee schedules provide links to web pages listing campus-based fees and their amounts, and a glossary of fees explains what each fee supports. In 2021-22, these fees amount to $2,075 of the $14,645 tuition and fees for California resident undergraduates.  

•  Campus Expansion Initiative Fee

• The Campus Expansion Initiative, or CEI, was originally approved by referendum in 2002 to help the campus make the move from Division II to the more competitive Division I play in the National Collegiate Athletic Association, or NCAA, and to improve student services, facilities and quality of life. It supports enhancements of a variety of students facilities and services including ICA grants-in-aid; the Student Health and Counseling Center; the Student Community Center; Campus Recreation; the Coffee House; Unitrans; and financial aid for all eligible students in need.

  In 2021-22, this fee is $604 for undergraduates for the year. Of that, $227 is allocated for grants-in-aid that make up about 80 percent of ICA scholarship funds.

  A grant-in-aid is an agreement for financial aid, for educational purposes, between a student-athlete and his or her head coach and has limitations set by the NCAA. ICA utilizes a partial‐scholarship model to administer its grant-in-aid program. Few students receive a full athletics scholarship that covers all of their expenses; instead, most will receive some athletics-based financial aid to help them through school. 

  Graduate students and professional students from the School of Medicine, the School of Veterinary Medicine and the School of Law are assessed only portions of the fee and so pay lesser amounts than undergraduates pay. 

• Student Services Maintenance Fee and Student Activities and Services Initiative Fee
• This fee, known as SASI for short, was originally approved by referendum in 1994. It provides funding for ICA, as well as Campus Recreation, the Cross Cultural Center and the Women’s Resources and Research Center.
  
  In 2021-22, this fee is $387 for undergraduates for the year. Of that total, about $344 is allocated to Athletics and is used for salaries and benefits and operating expenses.  

2. How a referendum happens 

A process is in place for a proposed referendum to become a ballot measure. It helps the sponsor navigate the review process, clarifies the language and what “yes” and “no” votes mean, determines the necessary number of votes to pass a referendum, provides stewardship over student dollars, and assists the ASUCD Elections Committee to put an approved referendum on the ballot.

Council on Student Affairs and Fees

The Council on Student Affairs and Fees, or COSAF, is an administrative advisory committee. It provides oversight of student fees and feedback on issues affecting students to the Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs and the Vice Chancellor of Finance, Operations and Administration. An important role of the council is to assure transparency and accountability regarding the use of student fees, and so the council is integral to the process for a proposed referendum becoming a ballot measure. The committee’s 19 voting members include 12 undergraduate students, four graduate and professional students, one faculty member and two staff members. The council publishes a Guide to Creating a Student Fee Initiative on its website. 

The process

• The beginning
• In the first step of the process, the referendum sponsor meets with three officials — the Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs-Student Life, the Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs-Divisional Resources and the ASUCD Business Manager — to discuss the proposal, go over the draft language and review next steps in the process. 
• Ballot language
• Next, the referendum sponsor presents COSAF with the draft ballot language and accompanying materials to collect comments and possible edits to the ballot language. The sponsor submits the draft referendum to the Vice Chancellor of Students Affairs, Campus Counsel and the Budget Office for review and certification. Then the Budget Office forwards the ballot language and accompanying materials to the UC Office of the President, or UCOP, for review and approval of the ballot language. 
• By the numbers
• The Office of the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs requests official enrollment data from the University Registrar. Fall enrollment data is used to determine the required number of students in the voting pool and for voting results. Spring quarter enrollment data is used to determine the required number of signatures on the petition to put the referendum on the ballot.
• Petition for signatures
• Once the ballot language is approved by UCOP, the referendum sponsor conducts a petition for signatures from the student body. The ASUCD Elections Committee provides the sponsor detailed instructions, materials and deadlines. For this referendum, the sponsor must collect signatures from registered undergraduate students representing at least 8% of undergraduate students. The sponsor and the Elections Committee work together to confirm the validity of petition signatures.
• COSAF review
• After meeting the petition requirements, the referendum sponsor submits all documents to the COSAF chairs for review and possible endorsement at a council meeting. The council sends its endorsement and/or comments in writing to the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs.
• Chancellor’s approval
• The Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs submits a letter to the Chancellor with a recommendation whether to authorize the initiative or not. If approved by the Chancellor, the ballot and accompanying documents are submitted to the ASUCD Elections Commissioner.
• Fall vote
• Beginning in the 2021-22 academic year, referendums are now included as ballot measures in the fall elections, which take place in the seventh week of the quarter.
  
  If voter turnout does not equal at least 20% of the eligible voting population, fees proposed in the ballot measure are null and void. The ASUCD constitution states that ballot measures must pass by a 60% vote. The fee initiative is submitted UCOP for review and approval, and if necessary, to the UC Board of Regents for approval.
• When a referendum takes effect

• If a ballot measure passes, any new fees take effect in the fall quarter of the academic year following the vote.  

3. Student support for Athletics

ICA depends on the support from student fees. UC Davis has more than 650 student-athletes and sponsors 25 varsity sport programs at the NCAA Division 1 level: 16 for women and nine for men. With multiple conference memberships, UC Davis plays from coast to coast. 

• How does the amount that UC Davis students pay for Athletics compare with what students at other universities pay?
• The UC Davis athletic program is among 125 schools in the Division I FCS. At many of those institutions that have lower student fees, the institutional support for athletics is paid for through higher tuition rates. At UC Davis, the fees for athletics are more transparent.
  
  Division I athletic programs operate with various funding models, and the chart below shows a comparison of student fee and institutional funding with other UC schools. Schools in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), such as Berkeley and UCLA, receive significantly greater revenue from ticket sales, broadcasting rights, merchandise and other similar sources and minimal revenue support from student fees or institutional funding. In contrast, DI schools in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) and DI schools without football programs rely more heavily on student fees and institutional support than generated revenue. On average, non-FBS athletics programs operate with about 75% of revenue coming from allocated sources (e.g., fees or institutional support such as state funds, tuition or other sources). UC Davis is often right in line with this percentage or just below it.
  
  University of California Intercollegiate Athletics Revenue by School - Fiscal Year 2019-20
  (dollars in thousands)

  School	Conference	Division Status	Total Revenue	Student Fees Support $, (%)	Institutional Support $, (%)	Student Fees + Inst. Support $, (%)	$/Athlete
  Berkeley	Pac-12	DI - Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS)	$105,045	$444 (0%)	$19635 (19%)	$20,079 (19%)	$119
  UCLA	Pac-12	DI - Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS)	$97,675	$2,517 (3%)	$60, (0%)	$2,577 (3%)	$140
  UC Davis	Big West	DI - Football Championship Subdivision (FBC)	$39,457	$24,524 (62%)	$3,825 (10%)	$28,349 (72%)	$64
  UC Irvine	Big West	DI - Non-football	$23,963	$5,215 (22%)	$13,292 (55%)	$18,507 (77%)	$74
  UC Riverside	Big West	DI - Non-football	$19,514	$2,450 (13%)	$11,569 (59%)	$14,019 (72%)	$74
  UC San Diego	Big West	DI - Non-football	$24,934	$17,962 (72%)	$1,274 (5%)	$19,236 (77%)	$45
  UC Santa Barbara	Big West	DI - Non-football	$20,578	$2,254 (11%)	$13,835 (67%)	$16,089 (78%)	$44

  *Source: NCAA Financial Report via WinAD
  **Figures based on NCAA reporting requirements. Inclused debt service. Capital expenses not included in NCAA reporting data.
• Can't UC Davis just redirect state funds to make up for the loss of student fees?
• Campus funds are not available to offset any loss of SASI and CEI funds that would occur if the proposed referendums were implemented.
  
  UC Davis has a structural deficit in core funds, meaning, there are more expenses than revenues available to support the mission, even with the recent increase in state funds. The campus has communicated these financial challenges since 2020. The campus has planned over $70 million in budget savings over five years and needs approximately $100 million more in revenue generation or savings to address this issue. Increases in state funds help support regular cost increases, program enhancements and infrastructure to ensure students have access to courses, services and support needed to graduate. Any increases in state funds support regular cost increases, program enhancements and infrastructure to ensure students have access to courses, services and support needed to graduate.
  
  Non-academic student programs and activities are primarily funded by student fees or other revenues generated by those activities. State funds and tuition are primarily used for the core instruction, research and public service missions.