Undergrads: vote YES to $1.75 more for QPIRG!
Polling is open October 29 to November 9! Vote at ssmu.simplyvoting.com or via the link sent to your McGill email.
Our fee has not changed since 2015! Over the last nine years, inflation has slowly restricted our budget. Our capacity to continue providing free services and programming to students is now severely limited by lack of funds.
The opt-outable QPIRG fee is currently $5 per semester for undergraduate students. Our fee in 1988 was $3, which, if indexed to inflation, would be $6.80 today. Inflation has drastically reduced our ability to continue operating as usual.
An additional $1.75 would bring our fee up to match inflation, which would go a long way to make sure that all of these programs can continue as usual! Vote YES to just $1.75 more! It’s change for change!
What happens if the majority of students vote no?
If the majority of students vote no, QPIRG would have to close or cut funding some of its free programs, including:
- a library with over 8,500 titles and a cute study space (unable to buy new books due to budget constraints)
- a photocopier that is free for McGill students to use (limited paper available due to lack of funds)
- the Programme d'emprunt de manuels scolaires (limited by lack of funds)
- Discretionary funding for small scale projects that cannot access mainstream sources of funding (closed since February 2024 due to lack of funds)
- the Recherche communautaire program for students who wish to conduct a research project that supports social or environmental justice (on pause temporarily due to lack of funds)
- part-time student jobs (Community Research position not offered this year)
- free popular education events (limited budget for events, unable to cosponsor events run by other groups)
- funding for 18 working groups (will receive less funding every year)
- new working groups (not accepted this year due to lack of funds)
We need your support! If you are an undergraduate student, you can vote in the SSMU Fall Referendum from October 29 to November 9. Vote now at ssmu.simplyvoting.com!