Wisconsin court rules on univ. club funding

Wildcat File Photo Arizona Summer Wildcat Jim Drnek Assistant Dean of Students

But because University of Arizona student groups are funded differently than those at most state schools, any similar cases might not stand in Arizona courts.

The Seventh District Appeals Court affirmed a lower court decision Aug. 10 that the University of Wisconsin-Madison could not require students to pay the activity fees.

"The university was forcing students to financially support private organizations that they did not agree with," said Jordan Lorence, a lawyer who argued the case before the court.

While the Associated Students of the UA does give money to political and religious organizations, about $265,000 of its nearly $800,000 1997-98 budget came from mandatory student fees compared with about $375,000 from UA Associated Students Bookstore revenues.

Because students can choose to shop at the UA bookstore or at one of its off-campus competitors, they are not forced to make purchases that support UA clubs and organizations.

"We share any book orders with Arizona Bookstore and Rother's," said Cindy Hawk, assistant director of the bookstore's book division. "We have many competitors."

In order to win the case, Lorence said he had to prove that it was a case of "government coercion."

"As I see it, our funds for groups come from the bookstore," said Jim Drnek, assistant dean of students at the UA. The difference in funding sources distinguishes the UA from schools such as the University of Wisconsin, he said.

The Wisconsin ruling, however, could apply to the portion of ASUA's budget that comes out of student tuition. That money, Drnek said, can only be used according to strict guidelines.

He cited the UA Funding Guidelines and Bylaws, which state that ASUA will only fund political and religious organizations for "administrative, execution or maintenance of non-political/non-religious programs or special events deemed beneficial to the student body by ASUA."

In Wisconsin, the court ruled that its state university's guidelines were unconstitutional.

The University of Wisconsin assesses a separate student activity fee, which is calculated by the Wisconsin Board of Regents. The fee is given to the university's student association, which allocates the money to clubs.

Three students sued the Wisconsin Board of Regents in 1996 because the regents assessed a mandatory $165 student fee per semester to support student organizations. The students objected to the ideals of 18 clubs, but had to pay the full activity fee to graduate or receive grades.

Lorence said the lawsuit was not aimed at limiting the speech of these groups.

"The groups are free to speak, but they can't get their money from people who don't wish to support them," he said. "The basis (of the case)was on the First Amendment, freedom of speech and government schools."

The University of Wisconsin students won the initial case and the regents appealed the decision in the Federal Court in Chicago before a three-judge panel. The regents now plan to go back for another try, said board Vice President Jay L. Smith.

He said the board decided Thursday to petition for a full panel review with the seventh district court and that it expects to get an answer in six-to-eight weeks. Smith also said that the Wisconsin university system is not planning to make systematic changes until the case is settled.

"It is business as usual until we get the court's decision," he said.

Lorence recently filed a similar lawsuit against the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities in district court. The court has yet to rule on the case.