Proposed increases in parking fees, residence hall rates and changes in miscellaneous fees and charges will be considered by the Board of Regents when it convenes at the Memorial Union on Wednesday and Thursday.

“For the campus community, reports on the residence systems, miscellaneous fees and parking will be of interest,” said Gregory Nichols, executive director of the Board of Regents. Each of those issues will not be voted on until the board’s April meeting in Council Bluffs.

Nichols characterized the miscellaneous fees and charges as mainly business operations costs.

“The fees are more that than anything else,” Nichols said. “They are user charges for services.” Both ISUCard replacement or the cost of ordering a transcript would fall under that category.

Regent David Fisher, West Des Moines, said he thinks residence hall rates will be an important part of the meeting.

“The new dormitory rates will be presented this month. There will be a lot of good discussion on that issue, certainly,” Fisher said.

DPS Capt. Doug Houghton, program coordinator for the Department of Public Safety’s Parking Division, said the parking fees the board will discuss are the same one that were approved by the Government of the Student Body Senate and Central Administration.

“Historically, we’ve asked for inflationary increases, but this year the increase is based on building new parking,” Houghton said. “The numbers are not big per person, but it will generate quite a bit of new money. This is not new stuff.”

Houghton said the goal is to have the first of the three parking expansion projects completed by August.

Nichols said beyond the university communities, the focus may be on enrollment numbers.

“From a broader public perspective the enrollment report for the spring term will be of interest,” Nichols said. “The report indicates the level of participation in education at the Regent institutions this spring, which is pretty high.”

In addition to the business of the two-day meeting, the Regents and board office staff will have an informal lunch with faculty who have been asked to share concerns. Nichols said he has corresponded with Christine Pope, president of the ISU Faculty Senate, about the upcoming luncheon.

“We wanted to make sure she knew we were encouraging them to bring up anything they are concerned about,” Nichols said.

On Thursday, the board and institution presidents and superintendents will discuss happenings within the Iowa Legislature, including Gov. Tom Vilsack’s budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2003.

“I think, given the circumstances, [Vilsack’s proposal] is generally a positive set of recommendations for the Regents institutions,” Nichols said.

The presidents and board members will likely discuss what they can do, Nichols said, and what they want to say publicly about the proposal. What to do about cuts in the last part of this budget year will also be of concern.

Nichols said this month’s meeting is a good example of the balance of the board’s duties.

“It is a tricky mix of responsibility,” Nichols said. “The board is responsible for setting fees and things like that, but [board members] are also stewards of the system.”

Nichols said is a major reason numerous annual reports are presented to the board, with this month’s focus on Spring enrollment and study abroad.

“They need to know that information because it has an impact on their view,” he said.

Fisher said the reports are valuable to the board in decision making.

“Those are very important for us. We can determine various trends, for example, the makeup of enrollment, that’s very important,” Fisher said.

The Board of Regents meeting will begin at 4 p.m. Wednesday in the Sun Room of the Memorial Union.

The meeting will reconvene on Thursday at 8:45 a.m. and again after lunch at 1 p.m. Thursday’s meeting will also be in the Sun Room.