![]() Category:
Financial Student Affairs Responsible Office:
|
Policy Title:
Fees, Rentals, and Other Charges Document Number:
7804 Effective Date:
April 01, 2024
This policy item applies to:
State-Operated Campuses
|
This policy outlines the various non-tuition related fees, rentals, and other charges established by the State University of New York (SUNY) and its State-operated campuses. It also sets forth the requirements, rules, and practices governing the development and implementation of such charges. Questions or concerns that are not addressed in this policy should be directed to the Office of Finance and Business at System Administration.
Under New York State Education Law §355, the SUNY Board of Trustees has the authority to regulate all tuition and fees at the State-operated campuses of the SUNY System. In accordance with its general authority to regulate fees students must pay as a condition of attendance, the Board of Trustees has promulgated regulations regarding specific fees and delegated to the Chancellor or Campus Presidents authority over other fees. Application of this fee structure with corresponding authority is as follows:
In general the process can be compartmentalized into seven steps as outlined below:
Specific due dates for the approval of student charges under this policy will be provided by the Campus President or Designee or Chancellor or Designee as appropriate. However, in general:
Further detail on general approval deadlines are provided in Attachment D
Campuses will be required to submit to the Office of Finance and Business a full registry of all student charges/fees governed by this policy at the end of fiscal year 2018/19 and then every other fiscal year thereafter. In the off cycle years, an updated registry of new fees must be submitted.
The Office of Finance and Business will utilize this information to: A) ensure that all student charges are appropriately approved, and B) maintain a central repository of all student charges that will be made available to the public.
Failure to provide this information will disqualify the campus from requesting any fee adjustments in the coming academic year.
Attachment A
State University of New York (SUNY)
Broad Based Fee Definitions
Broad Based fees are generally charged to the majority of students to finance discrete activities that benefit the student body, excluding any and all activities that could be considered to be part of the “Core Operations” mission of the campus that are funded by Direct and Indirect State Tax Support and Tuition dollars[5].
Broad Based fee revenue may be used for both salary and non-salary expenditures and any accumulated cash balances must conform to the University’s policy on financial reserves.
Annual requests for adjustments to Broad Based fee levels must follow the strictures put forth by the annual Broad Based Fee call letter released by the System Administration Office of Finance and Business. Furthermore, campus policies related to Broad Based fees must address part-time, non-traditional, on-line, and off-site students fairly. This includes a suitable refund and waiver/exemption policy, application applicable to winter or summer sessions, and proper assignment on student bills to allow for students to reconcile their annual charges to certain services.
These Broad Based fees may include, but are not limited to:
Fee Name |
Description |
College Fee |
The College Fee is generally assigned to all students attending a State-operated campus and is utilized to supplement campus operations. The College Fee is the only Broad Based fee which should have revenue estimated and reflected in the Core Operations Account (CAS – 34512 /SFS – 22655) Details on the College Fee are outlined in policy document 7800 |
Student Health Services Fee |
A Student Health Fee may be established for any State-operated campus that operate student health services, pursuant to the requirements of policy document 3752 Revenue resulting from the Student Health Fee shall be directed to health, counseling and prevention services, and related programs. |
Intercollegiate Athletics Fee |
The Intercollegiate Athletics Fee may be established for any State-operated campus as long as it follows the strictures of policy document 3000 A request to establish or increase an Intercollegiate Athletics Fee must include consultation with The Intercollegiate Athletic Board (IAB), student governments, faculty groups, and other required parties in public hearings and polls. For campuses requesting a new fee, evidence in support of the fee must be included in the request, and the budget of the athletics program is subject to the approval of the campus President or designee.
|
Academic Excellence and Success Fee |
The Academic Excellence and Success Fee is allowed only for those campuses designated in New York State Education Law as “University Centers” and will generally be charged to all students enrolled at the campus. Revenue generated by the fee must be used to enhance student academic support services, advisement, research opportunities, equipment, facilities, and scholarships, as well as tutoring, laboratory technicians, faculty, and other academic and student support services. The maximum value of this fee shall be $525 annually. |
Technology Fee |
A Technology Fee may be established for any State-operated campus to build, maintain, and support an information technology infrastructure that is appropriate for the individual campus to provide a high quality learning environment. Revenue from this fee may only support and address specific technology needs such as computing and information technology, library automation, remote network access, public computing sites, student services, automation, and other administrative and student serving systems. |
Transportation Fee |
A Transportation Fee may be established for State-operated campuses serving a student base that requires transportation from one location to another. Revenue generated from the fee may be used to support the operation and maintenance of an infrastructure for this activity. This shall include, but not be limited to, agreements with existing public or private transportation providers, the operation and maintenance of a campus-controlled system, or partnerships with other campuses. |
Other |
Other specific Broad Based fees may be established pursuant to discussion, analysis, and final approval by the Chancellor’s designee Examples include, but are not limited to, a per semester transcript fee, recreation center fees, campus life fees, and fitness center fees |
Attachment B
State University of New York (SUNY)
Mandatory Fee Definitions
Mandatory fees are authorized by the Board of Trustees to be charged in line with guidelines issued by the Board of Trustees following approval by the Chancellor or Designee. These fee types are of two kinds; those with a set dollar value or dollar value range and those that may be variable by campus.
State-operated campuses wishing to establish fees within either category must submit such request to the System Administration Office of Finance and Business and provide adequate information to allow for approval or disapproval as appropriate and must follow appropriate submission deadline[6] related to the term that the fee is intended to be charged.
Mandatory Fees include:
Set Dollar Value Range Mandatory Fees |
|
Fee Name |
Description |
Admissions Application Fee |
*Please note this is exclusive of the fees related to the use of any third party services (i.e. OptomCAS), in which the revenue is retained by the vendor and/ or association |
Re-Application Fee |
|
Late Registration Fee |
|
Drop / Add Fee |
|
Banking Services Fee |
|
Administrative and Late Payment Fees |
|
Collection Fee |
|
Academic Transcript Fee |
|
Course Auditor Fees |
|
Non-Matriculated Student Fee |
|
Mandatory Fees Variable By Campus |
|
Fee |
Description |
Course Based Fees |
A fee may be charged for a course, or courses, that have extraordinary costs that meet the following criteria; this listing is not intended to be all-inclusive:
Note that these fees are not permitted for routine materials (textbooks, etc.) and revenue from these fees may not be used to fund the cost of instruction, academic staff, or technicians.
Course Based Fees, including amounts, must be disclosed in campus publications used by students for degree, course and area of study selection. |
Administratively Cancelled Registration Fee |
Campuses may request to assess a fee for a situation wherein a student does not attend classes and fails to appropriately cancel their registration Requests for this fee must be provided with supporting documentation, including proper justification of the additional administrative cost incurred by the campus in the processing of these situations Please note that this fee is in lieu of Policy 7301 – Billings, Refunds, Collection, and Write-off Policy for Tuition, Fees, and Other Charges and is only for those situations wherein it can be demonstrated that the student did not attend any classes or avail themselves of any campus services
|
International Student Fees |
Campuses may request permission to charge international students appropriate fees to support immigration and counseling services that are required by the Government, such as the cost of Student Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) / Student and Exchange Student Information System (SEVIS) registration and monitoring, visa processing and reporting, and appropriate and documented non-teaching and learning counseling services |
Housing Termination Fee |
Campuses may request to charge a fee to students who are living on campus and are authorized to “break” their housing contract Notice of an approved housing termination fee must be provided within the campus housing agreement |
Other |
Campuses may request other specific fees, including but not limited to:
Requests for such fees must be submitted in accordance with the proper approval timeline and include such documentation as required by the Office of Finance and Business. |
Attachment C
State University of New York (SUNY)
Campus Authorized Fee Definitions
The Board of Trustees have authorized campus Presidents, or their designees, to establish certain fees without approval by the Chancellor or Designee.
Each of these fees must follow applicable guidelines and the requirements of State Finance Law, Education Law, and should only be established when appropriate campus specific guidelines and policies are put in place.
These guidelines and policies should be clearly posted and shared with System Administration’s Office of Finance and Business along with notification that such fees and charges are being imposed.
Fees and charges of this nature include:
Attachment D
State University of New York (SUNY)
General Timelines for Student Charge Submissions
[1] These policies can be found at the following locations (Student Activity Fee, Health Insurance Fees for International Exchange, Research, and Study Programs, Pre-Admission Deposits-Undergraduate Programs, Pre-Admission Deposits Refunds for Undergraduates, Pre-Admission Deposits-Graduate Programs )
[2] Further detail on general approval deadlines are provided in Attachment D
[3] While the majority of non-tuition student charges will be administered through the General IFR (CAS/SFS), or Dormitory Operating Funds (CAS/SFS), there are limited circumstances in which the revenue will be deposited and administered by campus-related entity, such as an Auxiliary Services Corporation (ASC). Campuses who plan to utilize a campus-related entity must submit a request to the Office of Finance and Business for approval. Approval is subject to the guidelines outlined in Policy #s- 7000, 9300, 9400, 9500 and 9600
[4] Further detail provided in Attachment D
[5] With small, limited, exceptions such as the College Fee and Academic Excellence Fee
[6] Further detail on general approval deadlines are provided in Attachment D
[7] While this fee is mandatory, minor exemptions exist for A) Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) eligible may receive up to seven free choices, B) New York State resident students who received an Associate’s degree at a public two-year community college in New York State who are transferring to a four-year public college are eligible for up to seven free choices, C) Students who are applying for the last year, or two years, of study in a cooperative program are not required to pay, and D) Students who meet the economic need definitions of the EOP program, but not the academic requirements, are eligible for up to seven free choices, E) Students attending New York State Public High Schools identified as “high need high schools” by SUNY System Administration pursuant to Board Resolution 2022-37 are eligible for up to seven free choices, and F) Alumni of AmeriCorps service programs are eligible for up to seven free choices.
[8] While this fee is mandatory, minor exemptions exist for A) Applicants re-applying to the same degree program within a single academic year, B) Applicants who are eligible for the Graduate Opportunity Program, C) Foreign students residing in a country that prohibits the sending of currency with the application may have the fee deferred until the student enrolls, D) Upon special dispensation of the Campus President or designee, with documentation supporting the waiver being provided to System Administration Office of Finance and Budget and the Office of University Audit, and E) Alumni of AmeriCorps service programs.
[9] While this fee is mandatory, minor exemptions exist for the same situations as outlined in the Graduate Application Fee section
[10] Additional information can be found in Policy 7816 – Waiver – Tuition for Course Auditors
[11] Additional guidance on Resident Hall Operations can be found in Policy 7605- “Residence Hall Operations Under IFR Procedures”
[12] For additional guidance please see Policy 7606- “Residence Hall Telecommunications Policy”
For the purposes of this policy, the below definitions should be utilized:
Campuses may bundle broad based fees on the student bill. Campuses are required to report broad based fee revenue amounts separately for revenue reporting purposes and provide individual fee amounts upon request.
More information on Waivers and Exemptions / Refunds can be found in Policy 7301-“Billings, Refunds, Collection and Write-offs Policy for Tuition, Fees and Other Charges”
Award of Academic Credit by Evaluation
College Fee
Deposits - Pre-admissions - Graduate Program
Pre-Admission Deposits - Undergraduate Program
Intercollegiate Athletics
Student Activity Fees - Mandatory
Student Health Services
Tuition, Fees, and Other Charges - Definitions
Tuition Schedule
Waiver - Tuition for Course Auditors
Educational Opportunity Program
Division of the Budget, Budget Policy and Reporting Manual - Guidelines for Accounts Receivable Management and Collection - Section K-034
Memorandum of Understanding between the Office of the Attorney General and the State University of New York, July 27, 2004
Health Insurance Coverage for International Exchange, Research & Study Programs
Intercollegiate Athletics, Fiscal & Accounting Procedures
Student Activity Fee Programs - Mandatory, Fiscal and Accounting Procedures for
There are no forms relevant to this policy.
The following links to FindLaw's New York State Laws are provided for users' convenience; it is not the official site for the State of New York laws.
Education Law §360 (Powers to regulate traffic on university grounds)
New York State Finance Law §18 (Interest and collection fees assessed on debts owed to the state)
State Administrative Procedure Act
In case of questions, readers are advised to refer to the New York State Legislature site for the menu of New York State Consolidated.
Tuition, Fees and Charges (8 NYCRR 302)
Board of Trustees Policies Vehicle and Pedestrian Traffic-Parking Regulations (8 NYCRR Part 560)
Chapter 55 of the NYS Laws of 1992