Auckland University of Technology student of Applied Science, Nicholas Green, is happy to pay a $130 annual fee to AUT's student association.
"I think it's good to put back into the student community. If it wasn't compulsory then everything would be sky-high and you wouldn't be able to afford anything," he reasons.
ACT list MP Sir Roger Douglas is promoting an Education Amendment Bill. He cites a recent fraud of Whitireia Polytechnic student funds as an example of the compulsory-funded bodies gone wrong.
When The Aucklander spoke with students at the Queen St Whitireia campus last week most were unaware of the student association's existence and the $135 fee they pay into the fund.
Computing student Helen Brown says nothing has been done on campus this year for her. "I would like the choice; my debt's big enough. I want to see what I'm getting before I pay for it," she says.
The new Whitireia Independent Student Association is three weeks into promising better services, accountability and transparency to the students.
Some say Sir Roger's bill is a political means for National and ACT to remove the Labour-left-leaning roots of the associations from tertiary institutions. Others say it's a choice long overdue, and voluntary membership will ensure associations earn their keep and allow simple market commerce to dictate their worth.
David Do, of the New Zealand Union of Student Associations, says the bill threatens to wipe campus life and advocacy.
"When membership was voluntary at Waikato University and Unitec, important student services, representation and advocacy were stripped away. More than 4000 submissions were received on Douglas' bill, and only 2 per cent were in favour," says Mr Do.
Albany Students' Association general manager, Nigel Green, says students can already opt out of the memberships, but most appreciate the services offered.
The University of Auckland will be the only campus unaffected as it is already free to join and voluntary. Despite this, its association's president, Elliott Blade, says he's wary of the bill as it actually removes student choice. "It removes student choice. It's put around choice but, actually, takes it away."
Last week, a select committee finished taking submissions in Auckland. Its finding is expected in Parliament on September 30.
What they do
Student associations devise campus activities such as clubs, events, advocacy, magazines and discounted services. Auckland University's association has existed since 1891.
The University of Waikato experimented with voluntary membership, but students voted to return to universal membership in 2000 after services were lost. Also that year, students at Christchurch and Waikato polytechnics, and the Waiariki Institute of Technology voted for compulsory membership.