GS Legacy Status

How does Columbia University justify excluding GS students from developing legacy status for their kids? I understand a lot of the administrative slights, but this one just doesn’t make sense. If GS is only different from CC in its admission process and the degree is seen as equal, there shouldn’t be a discrepancy. Columbia’s Ugrad admissions ostensibly contradicts itself on this point, saying:

“When an applicant is extremely competitive and compares favorably with other similarly talented candidates, being the daughter or son of a Columbia University graduate (from any Columbia school or college) may be a slight advantage”

And then qualifying this statement with:
“Please note: applicants are considered to be “legacies” of Columbia only if they are the children of Columbia College or Columbia Engineering graduates.”

Source: http://undergrad.admissions.columbia.edu/ask/faq/question/2412

Put me in the category of applicants who have some doubts about what Columbia GS exactly is and why things are set up the way they are. I’m leaning towards enrolling in the fall semester, but little things keep popping up that are cause for concern. I’m not trolling or looking down on GS (I’m probably going to come there), just trying to make sense of this.

@Swingline14 I can’t offer a ton of insight on the topic but it may have something to do with the fact that most GS students are transfers. Again, I am speculating and could be way off the mark.

Have you applied for Fall of 2016?