Student Fee Advisory Board (SFAB)

Proposed Standard Operating Procedures

1. Purpose

According to the Board of Regents Policy 260.0 VIII-2.50, revised June 22, 2012, Section I.5.i, the Student Fee Advisory Board (SFAB) is responsible for advising the President and Board of Regents of The University of Maryland, Baltimore on the type and amount of mandatory student fees, including University Student Government Association, Transportation, Parking, Housing, Campus Center Infrastructure Services, Off Campus Student Services, student accounting (late registration and late payment), and Technology. Each year, the advisor compiles the proposals from each school’s mandatory fees committee with the SFAB proposal and submits all the recommended proposed student fee types and amounts to the President.

2. Composition of the Board

a. Board

i. The board will consist of seven to 10 student members, including one student chair and one student co-chair. Each seat will be selected for a single-year term without term limits.

ii. The seven- to 10-member board will be decided by the chair and co-chair.

b. Chair

i. The selection of the chair will be made by a joint committee composed of the previous SFAB, advisor, and co-advisor.

ii. The chair will be selected early in the spring semester to provide enough time for selection of board members.

iii. Should a vacancy arise in the chair’s position during the course of the year, the co-chair will become the chair and the SFAB will select a co-chair from the existing board members.

iv. The chair or co-chair will report to the USGA on the board’s final proposal to the President.

v. The chair is responsible for leading each board meeting.

vi. The chair is responsible for crafting the memo to the President with the recommended proposed student fee changes.

c. Co-chair

i. The co-chair is responsible for taking minutes during the meetings, chairing the meetings in absence of the chair, and assisting the chair in any of their duties as necessary.

ii. The co-chair is responsible for sending the meeting minutes to the Campus Life Services representative to be placed on the website after each meeting.

d. Board Members

i. The board will consist of seven to 10 voting student members who are enrolled for no less than 6 credits at the University of Maryland, Baltimore and are in good academic standing.

ii. The Board cannot fall below seven voting members.

iii. Recruitment will be administered through USGA Senators early in the fall semester. Board members will be selected by the chair and co-chair.

iv. At least five of the schools must be represented on the board and request each of the seven schools to select members.

v. Each board member’s term is Aug. 31- May 31.

vi. Board members must attend the majority of the meetings.

vii. SFAB committee members must be present for the duration of each meeting, unless excused by the chair.

viii. SFAB members MUST be present in person at the funding presentation to vote on the respective fee change, unless the chair grants an exception under extenuating circumstances.

ix. If a committee member will miss a meeting, they must notify the chair.

x. The chair may require a committee member to send a proxy to the meeting to represent the viewpoint of the absent committee member.

xii. Proxy will be allowed to vote at the voting meeting.

xiii. Should a vacancy arise in the general membership of the board, it will be filled using the process in d(iii).

xiv. The chair, advisor, and the Assistant Vice President of Student and Academic Affairs make the decision in dismissing students from the SFAB as result of inappropriate student conduct as defined by the University’s seven core values.

e. Advisors

i. The Assistant Vice President for Fiscal and Academic Affairs  will appoint an advisor and co-advisor who will advise the board and chair on administrative issues.

ii. The advisor and co-advisor will advise the board regarding university policies and finances, and the SFAB operations.

iii. The advisor or co-advisor must attend all meetings.

iv. The advisor and co-advisor will compile all submitted proposals from the schools and SFAB, attach a memorandum, and submit to the President by Dec. 1.

3. Procedure

a. Training: All board members will attend an orientation meeting in the beginning of the fall semester.

b. At the orientation meeting, all subsequent SFAB meetings will be scheduled. In case of conflicts that cannot be easily resolved, the chair has the discretion to set up a meeting.

c. Nominations will be conducted for department liaison assignments during the orientation meeting. The departmental liaison will be a member of the SFAB and will have at least one meeting with the department applying for a change to student’s fees. It is the liaison’s responsibility to familiarize themselves with the department’s current budget and any potential budget changes the department may propose. The liaison also is expected to maintain ongoing communication with the department’s director to answer any questions the board members may have about the funding process.

d. The presentation and voting and memorandum meetings must be held in the fall semester. However, these meetings may be held in one comprehensive meeting to accommodate Board members’ schedules.

e. Requirements for Fee Increases: Fee change requests must be submitted online by a date determined by the advisor and co-advisor. This will be conveyed to the stakeholders through the advisor and co-advisor. The advisor will compile all requests and send them to the board members.

f. The departments that requested an increase will be invited to the meeting to present the proposed fee or fees and answer questions from the board.

g. Those requesting fee increases must leave during voting.

h. When voting on the fee proposals, board members will cast a yes/no/abstention vote, one vote per board member.

i. Board members or proxy must be present to cast a vote.

j. The chair will tally the votes, and fees approved with at least a two-thirds vote will receive a recommendation for fee change in the memorandum.

k. All mandatory fees will be included in the memorandum to the President with an explanation of the board’s decision. Once voting is completed, the advisor will provide the results to the departments requesting increases.

l. Once all votes are cast, the chair will draft the memorandum to the President. The chair will submit the memorandum to the board for revisions before giving it to the advisor.

m. The President of the University can convene the SFAB at any point.

4. Documentation, Communication, and Transparency

a. All meetings, allocations, budgets, and recommendations will be documented.

b. All board meetings will be open for the student body to attend, but only voting members shall be present during voting. The co-chair is responsible for notifying USGA of all meetings.

c. All documentation will be handed down from the previous chair.

5. Method of Amendment

A two-thirds vote of the board may recommend to the Assistant Vice President at any time during the term that the operating procedures be amended. The co-chair will amend the operating procedures after the vote. The board can vote to amend the changes to the bylaws at any time.