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CSUF students speak through ballots Titans cast their votes in ASI elections, two fee increase proposals By PHILIP FULLER Daily Titan Staff
Last week Cal State Fullerton students cast their votes in the Associated Students Inc. election. Two items on the ballot – proposed fee increases for the Student Health Center, and increases in
ASI fees – were aimed at studentsʼ pocketbooks. Students voted in overwhelming support for the $20 health services fee increase, bringing the cost for health services to $45, with 78 percent of students in favor of the increase. This is going to mean “increased access to students, and a reduced waiting time for an appointment,” said Cathy Baker, vice president of the Student Health and Counseling Center. Currently, the wait time for a non-emergency appointment is around 30 days. “Our dream is to
get that down to seven to ten days and in order to achieve this we need [a larger] staff,” she said. Money from the increased health fees will also be spent on increasing studentsʼ access to psychological counseling. “Right now, the waiting time to see a counselor is about 11 days,” Baker said. The centerʼs goal is five days or less when waiting to see a counselor. “I think emotional problems need more immediate attention than [they
currently have],” Baker said. The center will also use some of the funds from the increase to modernize its medical equipment, some of which Baker described as “huffing-and-puffing,” since they are very old. Students also approved an increase in ASI fees, which passed with 56 percent of the vote. “I am very excited about the fee referendum passing,” ASI President Mona Mohammadi said. “I think that it is really going to sustain student life on this campus. I real-
State proposition poll results Proposition 73 Abortion notification
66.76% reported No 50.75% Yes 49.25%
Part Two: Success of Fullerton Athletics goes unnocticed on commuter campus
Proposition 74 Teacher tenure
66.76% reported No 52.75% Yes 47.25%
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Opinion
Union dues
Is political apathy in younge age demographic politicians’ fault? 4
Surf Report Huntington
1-2 ft. ankle-to knee-high and poor conditions.
San Clemente
1-2 ft. ankle-to knee-high and poor conditions.
Compiled from www.surfline.com
Weather Today Showers 69º/57º Thursday Showers 68º/53º Friday AM Showers 68º/51º Saturday Sunny 71º/51º Sunday Sunny 76º/53º Compiled from The Weather Channel
Roadtrip Nation to assist studentsʼ search for interesting careers
CHRISTINA HOUSE/For the Daily Titan
Special elections held Tuesday will affect abortion and prescription drug sales, among other issues.
Californians vote on Schwarzenegger’s props
Statewide special election results may decide fate of unions The Associated Press
After being barraged by radio and TV ads, badgered by celebrities and warned about everything from higher taxes to a Republican power grab, California voters went to the polls Tuesday to decide the fate of Gov. Arnold Schwarzeneggerʼs ballot proposals. The Republican governor said his four initiatives came down to this: moving the state backward or moving it ahead. But Democrats and powerful labor unions that oppose him see only a vendetta
against teachers, firefighters and other working people. In terms of moving the state backwards or moving it ahead, Cal State Fullerton freshmen Yessenia Tenorio thought it was neither. “I think the governor is just leaving the state there, not doing much of anything, and I think he lies,” she said. “We must make the government a better servant to the people,” the actor-turned-governor said during a last-minute appeal for votes Monday as he canvassed the state in a private jet. He pleaded with residents, “Give me the tools to reform the system.” Actor Warren Beatty, a longtime Democratic activist who has emerged as one of Schwarzeneggerʼs most vocal critics, calls the gover-
nor not just wrong but undemocratic. “You have to look inside these Trojan horses and see what is really there,” Beatty told The Associated Press. The initiatives “are deceptively named, and they are not what they appear to be on the outside.” Freshman Candace Paniagua, a criminal justice major, agrees. “I donʼt think heʼs a bad governor, everybody else does, but I donʼt think he is,” she said. “Californiaʼs already in debt, he canʼt make that any worse.” John Miller, 56, a juvenile probation officer and a registered Democrat, was in line when polls opened at a San Francisco firehouse to vote against the propositions in PROPS 3
Orange County poll proposition results
AIRPORT 3
ROAD TRIP 2
Spending cap
65.78% reported No 60.08% Yes 39.92% Proposition 77 Redistricting
65.78% reported No 57.25% Yes 42.75% Proposition 78 Drugs-industry
65.78% reported No 58.11% Yes 41.89% Proposition 79 Drugs-labor
65.78% reported No 61.38% Yes 38.62% Proposition 80
Proposition B
Proposition C
Proposition D
Proposition E
Sales tax 4 of 949 precincts No 63% Yes 37%
Homeland infrastructure 4 of 949 precincts No 72% Yes 28%
Reallocating 4 of 949 precincts No 74% Yes 26%
Juvenile offenders 4 of 949 precincts No 68% Yes 32%
Electricity reregulation
65.78% reported No 65.71% Yes 34.29%
Airport expansion to up cost of flying Passengers at John Wayne to pay new fee for improvements By AARON BONK Daily Titan Staff
Passengers departing from Orange Countyʼs John Wayne Airport may be required to pay a $4.50 departure fee next year to help pay for the airportʼs planned terminal expansion. The proposed fee will help raise funds for the estimated $440 million needed for a third terminal, additional parking, security compliances and a U.S. Customs office,
said Airport Director Alan Murphy. Murphy said the airport, which was designed to handle 8.4 million passengers a year, is “maxed out.” Last year, John Wayne Airport handled more than nine million passengers, resulting in longer baggage lines and passenger screening delays. The airport has experienced significant growth in the last four years, said Murphy. “I have no problem paying a few extra bucks if it means Iʼll be able to get in and out of the airport quicker,” said Sean Dawson, an Orange-based computer technician who flies out of John Wayne Airport at least twice a month. Since the airport is owned and
operated by the county, the decision to implement the fee will be left to the Orange County Board of Supervisors and is scheduled to vote on Dec. 20. The Federal Aviation Administration must also approve the fee. Supervisors will vote on the fee along with an overall funding plan aimed at airport improvements. The fee could be charged to passengers as early as July 2006 if approved and will be imposed until December 2021. If passed, the fee is said to generate roughly $300 million. Other funding will be obtained through federal grants and revenue bonds and will be used in conjunction
Daily Titan Staff
with profits raised from the fee increase as well as airport revenue and reserve funds. Critics claim that one way or another, the passengers are going to pay for it – be it through fees or an increase in ticket prices. Others claim the airportʼs expansion poses problems on the environmental level. Newport Beach Mayor John Heffernan said in the Los Angeles Times, “Weʼre always wary of the airport…Itʼs the biggest environmental problem we have in the city.” Otherwise referred to as the passenger facility charge, the fee
Proposition 76
Editorial
Job tour to make stop at CSUF
For some college students, taking a road trip is the quintessential travel experience. Whether going to Las Vegas to celebrate a 21st birthday or Mexico for spring break, students can drive to various destinations and enjoy the freedom of the open road. “Statistically, people spend more time planning their vacation than their career,” said Career Center specialist Debbie Darling. But students may want to get away not for fun, but to escape the stress of their daily lives. They feel anxious about which direction to take their future, whether to pursue an advanced degree in graduate school or hunt for a position in the professional workforce. “Cal State Fullerton students need to start thinking about their careers and career path, not necessarily what mom or dad want them to do,” Darling said. Fortunately, there is an organization that gives students options to find which career fits them the best. Roadtrip Nation began four years ago when Pepperdine University grad Brian McAllister decided to take a road trip with his buddies Mike Marriner and Nathan Gebhard to find people with interesting jobs. So he bought an “old beat-up ʼ85 motor home” from his parents and a mini digital video camera to document their experiences on the road. “We didnʼt know anything about filming, but we wanted to keep a record of the whole trip to reflect back on it later,” McAllister said. The trio toured 28 local colleges in Southern California to invite students to meet professionals ranging from Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day OʼConnor to graphic artist Paul Frank. Their grassroots movement soon gained momentum, attracting more high profile professionals to interview and corporate sponsors to fund the companyʼs operations. Although McAllister is proud of Roadtrip Nationʼs success, he is humble about his role in studentsʼ lives. “Weʼre not guidance counselors or career coaches. We just hope to inspire people with the stories we share and facilitate career exploration,” he said. Roadtrip Nation will bring its signature green RV to campus this Thursday to show interview footage and promote their programs to fund road trips of potential Titan candidates. The “Behind the Wheel” program, sponsored by the CSUF
66.76% reported No 50.36% Yes 49.64%
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ELECTIONS 3
By VALERIE SWAYNE
Proposition 75
CSUF students speak up for not speaking out special election
ly think the improvements will be seen by the student body with the increased fee.” She is also said that the increase in ASI fees should sustain programs that are currently utilized by students, but may have been in danger of being cut without the increase in fees. “We are hoping that in the first year of the fee we will be able to sustain all current programs without having to make any cuts to budgets,”