Considering what Harvard students and their parents pay for tuition, the Undergraduate Council is hoping they won't mind an extra $20 on the term bill.

At last night's meeting, the council voted to ask the students whether they would like to increase the term bill fee from $20 to $40. The question will be put to a binding referendum in April.

"The term bill fee has been $20 since something like 1983," said council President Noah Z. Seton '00 as he presented the legislation. "Our student fee is less than half of any of the other Ivies."

"It's time to have a change. But that change can only come with the consent of the student body," he added.

The optional $20 fee appears on every student's term bill. If students vote for the increase, an extra $124,400 would go into the council's budget.

"We would probably be able to increase the grants fund by $100,000," Seton said. "That is something that will increase the quality of life of student groups."

Bradley L. Davis '00, the chair of the council's Finance Committee, said a larger grants fund would provide aid for dozens of student organizations.

"The number of student groups has increased significantly," he said. "We don't have any more money to give these groups."

This semester, the average grant awarded to a student group is $350, Davis said. But groups request an average of $500 to $600.