Starting November 24, Colgate will be changing its billing system. The current system, which has been in place for over 30 years, involves two processes. Fees and tuition bills are sent electronically to students, and upperclassmen have the option of receiving hard copies of the bills at home. Fines, however, are billed under a separate system and are sent to students only. It is possible for students to authorize third parties to receive tuition bills electronically.

Recently, this system has been causing problems. Most notably, many parents have expressed frustration because they were unaware their child had unpaid fines. Furthermore, having an unpaid balance can cause complications for a student when it comes to applying for on-campus jobs or registering for classes for the upcoming semester.

The new system will include one bill that combines tuition fees and fines.

“We looked around at other schools,” Associate VP/Controller Tom O’Neill said, “And no one seems to be using the same billing system as we do. With the new system, parents and students will be looking at the same financial information, which will make identifying the total balance due less confusing.”

Under the new system, juniors and seniors will still have the option of receiving paper copies of the bills.

All students with unpaid fines who do not want these charges to show up on their tuition bill for the second semester should pay their balance before November 24. After this date, any unpaid fines will transfer over to the monthly tuition invoices. The spring semester billing will begin December 1, and this will be the first time the new system will go into effect.

The bill will be available online through QuikPAY to any authorized third party.

Students are urged to communicate this new information with any person who receives their bill in order for those parties to understand why new charges may appear.