OUR VIEW: USU students can benefit from using I.D. cards off campus

Imagine being able to use a Utah State University student I.D. card at Smith’s, Albertson’s, 7-Eleven, Wal-Mart and many other stores around Logan.

Well, it’s more of a possibility than some may imagine.

The Daily Press, a newspaper in Norfolk, Va., reported that Old Dominion University students may use their cards as cash. ODU students aren’t the only ones.

Blackboard Inc., operates on-campus card programs at more than 400 colleges and universities and runs off-campus card programs at about 25. It’s looking to branch out.

Another company, SA Cash, doesn’t force students to pay setup or transaction fees, and parents can add money from home simply by getting online.

This service could become widely used at Utah State University. The Daily Press reported that both the university pay a fee to get the program underway, and local businesses keep it going.

Since the card makes it easier for students to make purchases when they don’t have cash, businesses see more money rolling in. So, everybody wins.

Even parents win, the Daily Press reports, because alcohol and tobacco cannot be purchased using SA Cash. USU should look into this service and provide it for students’ use. Students can talk to ASUSU Executive Council members and urge them to back a plan to bring off-campus card use to Logan.