Senator's defeat dims outlook for 'College Costs Savings' bill

Nation's Restaurant News, Nov 23, 1998

WASHINGTON -- The defeat of a North Carolina senator apparently has ensured the death of a nascent Senate bill that might have restricted the financial freedom of college and university foodservice programs.

The bill, S.B. 2490, dubbed the College Costs Savings Act of 1998, was introduced last month by Republican Sen. Lauch Faircloth. It was referred to the Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources. A committee source said the bill was unlikely to be brought up before the end of the 105th Congress.

The source added that because Sen. Faircloth was the only sponsor of the bill, his defeat earlier this month "probably means the bill will die in committee."

The purpose of S.B. 2490 was "to prohibit post-secondary educational institutions from requiring the purchase of goods and services from on-campus businesses," among other provisions, and called on the secretary of education to withhold federal funds from any college or university that did not comply with the law.

Faircloth's bill was aimed primarily at campus bookstores, which tend to monopolize the sale of textbooks and other course material. However, in the speech Faircloth made before the Senate to introduce the bill, he attacked the idea of campus debit cards, which an increasing number of college foodservice operations are using.

"Through the use of Department of Education-permitted 'student accounts,' colleges are creating their own dominance in such areas as college bookstores," Faircloth said. "Off-campus choice is virtually unavailable, even if off-campus stores offer students a less-expensive alternative. With the development of 'campus cards,' aid is even more captive to the on-campus economy."

The bill attracted the attention of the National Association of College & University Food Services, which addressed the issue in its "First Monday" monthly newsletter to members.

"Although the bill's language does not specifically name campus cards, the prohibition of [more favorable treatment to on-campus businesses] could result in a mandate for [debit cards'] use in off-campus businesses," the newsletter stated.

Because NACUFS' bylaws prohibit lobbying in any form, NACUFS' president, Julaine Kiehn, director of Campus Dining Services at the University of Missouri, said she could not talk about the bill itself. However, she noted that she also had heard the bill probably would not leave the committee.

Generation Y heads to college

A large majority of colleges and universities experienced small to moderate increases in enrollment this year, according to a poll of more than 100 institutions that belong to the National Association of college and University Food Services, or NACUFS. As the "baby boomlet" children begin to graduate from high school, two-thirds of the members polled reported at least a small increase in students, while less than 16 percent reported a decline in enrollment. Another 18 percent said their enrollment remained the same as last year's.

The percentage growth among the respondents who reported an increase:

PERCENT REPORTING 43.1%  32.6%  15.5% 8.6%
PERCENT GROWTH    0-2.5% 2.5-5% 5-10% 10-20%


Source: NACUFS schools