NIU President John LaTourette’s Fee Study Committee reviewed a proposal for a student fee increase for fiscal year 1990 to help fund a Revenue Bond Fee.

The Revenue Bond Fee Committee requested a fee of $68.04 per semester from full-time students to help support the Holmes Student Center. If the request is approved by the fee study committee, a recommendation will be made to LaTourette to increase the revenue bond fee by $7.80 per semester for full-time students from FY89. The current bond fee is $60.24.

According to the proposal, the increases would be used for additional student center operating costs and to generate more funds for the recladding of the tower.

William Herrmann, bond revenue operations director, said the additional operating costs would help to pay for salary increases, student center repairs and to replace furniture. “A lot of the equipment is 25 years old and needs to be replaced,” he said.

Paula Radtke, Student Association president and student committee member, said the student center revenue bond fee request “is a vicious circle. It bugs me because students always get jabbed (to pay additional fees). When are we going to start making internal changes?”

Student credit sales and increased hotel room rental rates were proposed to help keep student fee increases at a minimum.

The bond fee committee also requested a student fee increase of 60 cents per semester for full-time students to help fund the Huskie Stadium and the Chick Evans Fieldhouse. The additional fee request would increase the current full-time student fees from $22.32 per semester to $23.02 per semester.

Herrmann said the proposed stadium and fieldhouse increase would allow replacement of the Astroturf and seats and help resolve the poor lighting problem at the stadium.

James Harder, vice president for business and operations, said the bond fee committee is waiting for a report about whether Astroturf or grass is the most effective option for the stadium.

Herrmann said, “If you don’t have Astroturf in the stadium, the only people who will use it is the football team.” He said other student activity groups that need to use the stadium would ruin the grass.

The seats in the stadium need to be replaced because “they’re uncomfortable and they’re unsafe,” Herrmann said. “The seats are cracked and breaking and the bolts are rusting through.”

The bond fee committee also requested to continue the current level of student fees to help fund the Student Recreation Center. Full-time students currently pay $25.20 to help support the recreation center.

A preliminary decision was not made regarding the revenue bond proposals. The final decision will be presented in a report to LaTourette in mid-February.

In other business, the committee began reviewing a possible student fee that would allow the installation of a battery-operated security phone system on campus.

Radtke said the phone system would be a “crime preventative measure” that could also be used for non-emergency reasons.

A student referendum was held Tuesday to determine whether full-time students want to pay a one year fee of $3.25 to install the security phone system on camps.