U.C. Referendum: Vote 'No' Twice

Now that the Undergraduate Council elections are finally over, our council representatives have given us yet another chance to vote on-line: this time, with a referendum on grants to student groups and house committees. We applaud the council's decision to bring such an important and contentious issue to a popular vote--even though it has been delayed a few days--but we urge students to vote no on both questions.

The referendum deals with increasing the percentage of the council's $120,000 budget that it allocates to student groups from 63 percent to 65 percent, and permanently allocating five percent of the council's budget for block grants to the houses. While we definitely feel that Harvard's student groups should be supported, it is premature to call for these significant increases. The reason for this is that only one and a half months ago did the council vote to increase its spending to the current 63 percent, an all time high. In other words, there simply hasn't been enough time to evaluate the effects on the council's purse of the last increase, let alone a new one.

It is possible that the increase will not affect the council's ability to plan events like the Harvard-Yale tailgate and last year's gala ball, but it is simply too soon to tell. We do not want to tie the council's hands by making the 65 percent allocation a constitutional requirement. The council's record is mixed when it comes to entertainment, but one thing is sure; they can't put on a good event if they don't have the money.