With only one meeting left in the year, the Student Senate finally made itself legal for the summer.
In the past two meetings, the Senate Rules Committee has worked to bring a set of rules to govern the senate during the summer. The ASUO Constitution Court deemed the original ones illegal earlier this year.
Although the rules committee brought a set of rules it unanimously approved, the senate had multiple amendments to add and remove from the draft.
But once the changes were made to resolve the legality of how many senators make quorum, how they should be paid and how many office hours they should hold, the new draft passed unanimously and the senate can now function during the summer.
The senate also approved three special money requests, although one created some dissent among senate members.
The EMU Cultural Forum asked the senate for $2,500 to pay for this weekend’s Folk Festival and its headlining band, Portland’s Pink Martini. Although senators were willing to approve the money, they realized it would have to go into a fund raising account, a violation of ASUO rules.
Senator Helen Stocklin-Enright suggested the money be given to the ASUO Executive, which could then allocate the money to the forum. But Senator Peter Watts said he worried that procedure would be just as bad.
“I don’t think we should launder money through the exec. for programs,” he said.
But Senate President Jessica Timpany called the move a simple technicality and enough senators agreed to pass the allocation by a 9-5 vote.
The senate also approved $400 to the Survival Center for the Student Alliance to Reform Corporations, a national conference that selected the University for its meeting in June. It also gave $150 to Justice For All for an upcoming conference.
With only one meeting left in their terms, this year’s senators will meet with next year’s body over the weekend to help them transition into their new roles.