In 2012-13 tuition fees, undergraduate students paid roughly $15 each to the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS). That money—more than $300,000—was sent to the Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA) to be paid out, but wasn’t.
CUSA maintains they cannot pay the CFS without knowing how much they owe. The CFS says they don’t know how much CUSA owes because only CUSA knows the value of the levy that was collected, as the number of students fluctuates each year.
CUSA has strong feelings toward the CFS. In 2009, CUSA attempted to defederate from the national student union. This year’s executive ran on a platform to defederate, and the 2012-13 executive removed all CFS material from CUSA service centres.
CUSA not paying the CFS last year screwed undergraduates out of $15. Students paid money but received no services from the CFS. They were not refunded.
The same will happen again this year if CUSA doesn’t forward the levy. The money would join the pool of unpaid CFS levy money held over from last year, according to president Alexander Golovko.
He said ending the levy payment is possible through defederation if CUSA can prove to the university that students are not getting value for their money.
CUSA has come to that conclusion and acted on it unilaterally by not forwarding the levy to the CFS. However, the levy is still being collected and students have nothing to show for it. Undergraduates should receive CFS services or get their money back.
