Date: September 9, 2001

Attention: All School Trustees

cc. Superintendents, Secretary-Treasurers 

The following information is of importance to trustees and senior administrators.

The legality of school fees has re-emerged this fall as a hot issue in the media. Coverage has included guest columns in the Victoria Times Colonist by Greater Victoria School District Trustee John Young and commentary on CBC Radio.

This Edufax has been prepared to provide boards with background on this issue in anticipation of continued media and community interest.

Background

• In his guest column trustee John Young takes the position that school boards are not permitted by law to require students to come to school equipped with pencils, paper and other materials, or with suitable footwear for gym, or to pay graduation fees, school activity fees, field trip fees, rental fees for musical instruments.
  
• As authority, Mr. Young refers to a 1997 B.C. Supreme Court judgment: McDonald and Chamak v. S.D.#61 (Gr. Victoria), which held that course fees covering materials and field trip fees were unlawful charges for "educational resource materials." The decision did not deal directly with school supplies.
  
• This decision predates amendments to the School Regulation and the School Board Fees Order, including a definition of "educational resource materials" that authorize many of the fees mentioned. Although Mr. Young launched a lawsuit in 1998 to challenge the legal validity of those amendments, the suit was discontinued.
  
• The Greater Victoria School Board's policy is not to charge fees in all the circumstances permitted by the School Board Fees Order.
  
• A substantial number of school district policies on fees and deposits can be found in the policy section of BCSTA's website: www.bcsta.org.
  
  

School Board Fees Order

The School Board Fees Order gives boards the ability to charge or not charge fees as follows:

School supplies:

Supplies for a student's individual use (including paper, writing tools, planners, exercise books, computer diskettes, and calculators except for graphing calculators) are specifically excluded from the definition of "educational resource materials." School boards are not under any obligation to supply them as part of the educational program.

The Ministerial Order specifically permits school boards to charge fees if the school supplies them, however, the board must have in place "policies and procedures to facilitate participation in activities by school age students resident in the school district who would otherwise be excluded due to financial hardship."

Footwear for gym:

Footwear, personal clothing, outerwear, and personal safety equipment appropriate for school activities are specifically excluded from the definition of "educational resource materials." School boards are not under any obligation to supply them as part of the educational program.

Grad and student activity fees:

These fees are not part of the educational program. Mr. Justice Drake upheld these fees in the Chamak case.

Field trip fees:

School boards may recover the expenses involved in having a field trip, including transportation, accommodation, meals, entrance fees and equipment rental. School boards cannot recover expenses for instruction, unless the field trip is not necessary to meet required learning outcomes or assessment requirement of the educational program. The board must have in place "policies and procedures to facilitate participation in activities by school age students resident in the school district who would otherwise be excluded due to financial hardship."

Rental fees for musical instruments:

These charges are authorized by the School Board Fees order. The board must have in place "policies and procedures to facilitate participation in activities by school age students resident in the school district who would otherwise be excluded due to financial hardship."

Course fees:

The validity of these fees depends on how the money is used. Fees can be charged if they are for field trips (as set out above) or for project materials ("materials used in goods that are intended for the student to take home for personal use or as a gift.") Fees cannot be charged to pay for general classroom supplies. The simple description of "course fee" leads to confusion over whether the charges are legitimate; boards may find it helpful in addressing parent concerns if the rationale for the fee is identified.

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This information is provided to assist boards that anticipate inquiries on this topic. If you have any questions, BCSTA staff will be happy to assist you. Contact Communications Manager Jean Ciriani or Legal Services Director Judith Clark at (604) 734-2721.