By Shelly Baskin
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wkms/local-wkms-1000948.mp3
Murray, KY – Potentially thousands Murray State University students, who attend classes in the city of Murray, may soon be required to purchase a $50 city sticker annually for their vehicle. Typically residents and students who live and work in Murray purchase a city sticker in lieu of a payroll tax. Students who don't work in Murray are currently exempt from the requirement.
For 51 years, Murray State University students have been exempt from buying a $50 city sticker while they attend school as long as they aren't working. The sticker fee pays for city services such as road upkeep and public safety programs. But recently, city officials opened discussions on an ordinance to require all students to pay the fee. Student Government Association President Jeremiah Johnson thinks it's wrong to charge the exempt students. He says,
"For the students that, like my sister, live in the residential college and don't work on campus, drive home maybe on Friday and come back late Monday night cause she only has classes Tuesday through Thursday, I don't feel that that's really fair. When they're only here three out of the seven days of the week and not even here a full eight months."
Murray Mayor Bill Wells says they're considering the change because all students benefit from the services even when they aren't working in the city. But he says he doesn't think they should pay the full amount. He says,
"My first idea when we started talking about this in February of 2011 was that because the students aren't here for twelve months, that we should be able to work out a discount rate of some type."
But Wells says the city attorney found problems with that idea. He says,
"We ran into some ordinance situations where we couldn't give one special group a discount, per se. Then we had to look around to do something else."
Wells says as it stands now, he thinks the best way to implement the fee would be to prorate it based on the time they spend in Murray.
The University's Director of Community Relations Mark Welch says whether or not the fee is pro-rated the university is still against the new requirement. Welch says part of the reason the university has opposed the fee is because it could be a significant burden. He says,
"For some students an extra $50 or even a prorated fee of maybe 36 or 37 dollars might be a pretty big hit."
Right now the ordinance is still sitting in the city finance committee. However, if the committee passes the measure, it could be voted on during Thursday's city council meeting. Mayor Wells says nothing is certain in the matter yet, and says the ordinance could be tabled to further review the city's options. But, both Mayor Wells and Mark Welch of the University believe that despite the differences in opinions from both sides, a compromise will be reached.