A student election to increase the Eco-Pass by $2.75 will be held from Nov. 13 to Nov. 16  adhering to the unanimous decision made by the DASB Senate at their meeting on Wednesday Oct. 25.

This issue was brought to the board’s attention at the senate meeting that was held the week prior on Oct. 18.

The logistics as to why there had to be an increase due to a rise in price with the VTA last spring was presented to the board along with propositions to be able to cover the cost with the school budget.

“They [VTA] had a grant that was going to cover the clipper card cost and that grant ran out so now they’re charging us for the clipper card,” said Susan Cheu, Vice President of Finance and college operations.

According to the VTA’s official website, there has not been a fare increase since 2009.

Cheu presented a powerpoint to the senate, who mainly concerned themselves with what the increase would mean for students and how much more we would have to pay.

The Eco-Pass is being paid for every time one registers for classes and pays for them, whether they use it or not.

An increase in covering the Eco-Pass would also mean an increase in tuition.

This was the reason that it was decided at the Oct. 25 meeting to let the students decide, since the increase will directly affect them.

The motion was passed at this meeting to agree to hold a general student election so that the students can decide whether they want to increase the price or not pay and end funding and use of the Eco-Pass at De Anza.

The advertising and promotion of this topic was a burning issue at this week’s meeting as well, as the marketing department, who is responsible for handling tasks such as publicly communicating to the students what’s going on, has been a concern to the senate since last week’s meeting.

Brought up as an issue towards the end of the Oct. 18 meeting, the marketing committee has been observed by the rest of the senators as not fulfilling basic requirements such as business-card orders for DASB Senators being ordered incomplete and incorrectly.

This is a crucial element that the senate feels they need to get under control, especially in the upcoming elections involving the Eco-Pass as well as general elections.

Marketing plays a huge role in how students will be able to take part as a student body and make decisions that will be best for everyone.

“This senate needs to come together.” said DASB Trustee Elias Kamal. “Marketing is essential for the Eco-Pass to go through and this isn’t like a one time movie night or club day. This affects the pockets of students for years to come.”

Maharshi Mandal, Chair of Marketing, assured the board throughout all of this that calendars are being made and there is actual work that will be getting done including getting the information for the Eco-Pass out there for students.