Update: As of 1:45pm PST on Monday, January 29, the British Columbia Federation of Students has not remitted the fees discussed in this story. The Canadian Federation of Students told Nexus today that they are waiting on the Camosun College Student Society (CCSS) to propose new referendum dates so the fees can be remitted within the six-week deadline. However, the CCSS says that because they have remitted their CFS fees (to the BCFS), the referendum should still happen on the proposed dates. Camosun students are paying fees to both the CFS and the BCFS while the organizations are in this dispute, and a referendum can not take place between April 15 and September 15, during which time Camosun students will still be paying to both organizations. More as this story develops.
Following the approval of a petition from Camosun students to begin the process, the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) has proposed March 7, 8, and 9 as dates to hold a referendum in which Camosun students can vote on whether or not to defederate from the organization.
But the referendum can’t happen, the CFS says, unless the British Columbia Federation of Students (BCFS) remits the approximately $200,000 of Camosun students’ CFS membership fees that it’s holding.
CFS bylaws state that all unpaid fees must be remitted at least six weeks before a referendum, which means the BCFS would have to remit the fees by Wednesday, January 24.
The BCFS, however, says that the CFS has no grounds to stop the referendum, as those fees have been remitted to the BCFS, which is a provincial component of the CFS.
The BCFS is holding the fees because the CFS owes the BCFS money, part of which is also Camosun students’ fees, and because of ongoing concerns about how the CFS is being run (see nexusnewspaper.com for our past coverage).
The CFS says the BCFS has no right to be holding Camosun students’ fees, as students were led to believe the money was going to the national organization.
The BCFS says the two organizations are separate legal entities.
The Camosun College Student Society (CCSS) has sent an email to the CFS saying that those dates in March would work for them for a referendum but notes that those dates are coming up very soon, whether or not the BCFS remits the fees.
“It’s tight, regardless,” says CCSS executive director Michel Turcotte.
CFS treasurer Peyton Veitch says the referendum cannot move forward with outstanding fees.
“The [CFS] bylaws are clear that in order for a referendum to proceed as scheduled the local needs to be up to date in its remittance of national membership dues six weeks before the first day of voting,” says Veitch. “Provided that requirement is met, the referendum will proceed.”
However, BCFS chairperson Simka Marshall says that because fees have been remitted to the BCFS, the referendum should be able to happen.
“What we know is that fees have been remitted by the Camosun College Student Society to the BC component of the CFS, so they have completed their duty when it comes to fee remittance,” says Marshall. “The dispute between the CFS and the BCFS, including the withholding of fees, shouldn’t affect Camosun students’ rights to have a referendum on membership. The only reason why [the CFS] would be a refusing a referendum at this point in time is because they don’t want them to have a referendum.”
The CCSS also feels that the fees that the BCFS is holding shouldn’t stop the referendum from happening. Turcotte feels the CCSS is in compliance with the CFS bylaws; he says the CCSS remitted fees to the BCFS with the understanding that the BCFS would remit the national portion of the fees to the CFS, but the BCFS held them instead of passing them along.
Veitch says the CFS has made proposals to the BCFS in regards to settling its debts that “have not been reciprocated in a meaningful way.”
“[We have] offered to exchange full accountings of fees outstanding with the BCFS as a first step towards the issue of outstanding membership fees,” says Veitch. “We acknowledge that there are provincial allocations that haven’t been provided to the BCFS that will be made available upon receipt of the outstanding membership fees.”
Marshall denies that the CFS has made these proposals; Veitch provided Nexus with an email from himself to Marshall dated April 18, 2017 where he suggests the two organizations exchange full accountings of amounts owing to and from each other.
Veitch confirms that the CCSS has started paying CFS fees directly to the CFS, but the fees that the BCFS is holding are still considered outstanding.
“The bulk of membership fees over the last three years remain outstanding,” says Veitch.
Turcotte says the CCSS “would not be in favour” of a referendum not happening because the BCFS hasn’t remitted fees. He says what the BCFS does is beyond the CCSS’ power. As far as he’s concerned, the CSSS has remitted those fees; the national office just doesn’t have them yet.
“It’s a conversation that Peyton and I are going to have,” says Turcotte, adding that the CCSS is now paying fees to both the BCFS and the CFS. “I believe we’ve done everything in our power.” (Veitch says that while he understands Turcotte’s position, the fees need to be remitted to the national office before a referendum can happen.)
Turcotte says one option is that the CFS and BCFS go to court and put the fees into a lawyer’s trust account. He says that the CCSS has conducted itself in accordance to both organizations’ bylaws.
“National owes the BCFS a chunk of money as well,” says Turcotte. “They’re obviously having a fiscal dispute of some kind to which we, as the Camosun College Student Society, are not a part of that dispute. National has not paid the provincial allocation that rightfully belongs to the BCFS, and, obviously, the BCFS has not remitted national fees that rightfully belong to the Canadian Federation of Students.”
Marshall says that there’s “no legitimate grounds” for the CFS to stop this referendum from taking place.
“Camosun students have done their job by remitting their fees to this component of the CFS and it’s clear, through getting a fulfilled petition, that students on that campus want to be able to exercise their right to decide on whether or not they want to stay in this organization,” she says.
Marshall says the CCSS has done what they needed to do in regard to fee remittal and stresses that the referendum should be able to happen.
“We stand by saying that the local has completed their duty by remitting their fees to the BC office of the CFS,” she says.
If the referendum doesn’t happen, Camosun students will have to pay CFS fees until a referendum does happen. CFS bylaws state that a referendum cannot happen between April 15 and September 15.
See nexusnewspaper.com for the latest on this developing story.
With files from Greg Pratt, managing editor