We the undersigned members of the graduate student community at the University of Minnesota draw attention to the need for reform regarding the collection of graduate student fees. The current graduate student fee collection policies create unexpected and unnecessary financial burdens on the graduate student community at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. The following reforms will assist in alleviating these burdens:

(1) The inclusion of a waiver for the payment plan fee and late fees as part of a standard package for all graduate assistants at the University of Minnesota, so that all graduate assistants may pay out their fees over the course of the semester without incurring additional fees;

(2) A reexamination and revision of the timeline for the payment plan when applied to amounts under $2000 for the semester, including the availability to pay fees by the end of the semester without additional fees or to pay out on a weekly basis;

(3) Consider the rolling of all fees into tuition or into graduate assistant packages, which would mean significant tax savings and increased income for students;