ASUO Senate voted to create a working group Wednesday night to shape a resolution in support of a Good Samaritan Policy.
A Good Samaritan Policy says that if a person is intoxicated to the point of needing medical attention, that person and his or her friends will be excused from an minor in possession if they need to go to a hospital.@@excuse to get shitfaced without facing a ticket. sweet!@@ @@That’s the most silly thing ever. “Oops. I may need medical attention, Officer.”@@

Sam Chapman,@@http://directory.uoregon.edu/telecom/directory.jsp?p=findpeople%2Ffind_results&m=student&d=person&b=name&s=Chapman@@ a volunteer for Students for Sensible Drug Policy,@@http://ssdp.org/@@ came to speak about making the policy apply to drugs as well as alcohol.
“(The) number one cause for overdose is a combination of alcohol and drugs,” Chapman said. “If we leave out drugs, there is a massive hesitation to seek help.”@@drugs, too!@@
There wasn’t much discussion on the topic, and his request was approved.
“If we get one extra person to call in for help, it is potentially saving one life,” Chapman said.
Earlier in the meeting, transfer student Jorge Vera@@http://directory.uoregon.edu/telecom/directory.jsp?p=findpeople%2Ffind_results&m=student&d=person&b=name&s=Jorge+Vera@@ was confirmed as the last member of the elections board. He was the student body president of his last school, East Los Angeles College, and has worked on student elections before.
“Being student body president was hectic and busy,” Vera said. “I had to handle a lot.”
After the confirmation, numerous special requests were made, including two to return money back to surplus.
The first group, People of the Pacific,@@http://asuo.uoregon.edu/studentorgs.php#letter-p@@ requested to return $854.
Upon first vote, everyone affirmed except Sens. Tom Schally@@http://directory.uoregon.edu/telecom/directory.jsp?p=findpeople%2Ffind_results&m=student&d=person&b=name&s=Schally@@ and Lindy Mabuya.@@http://directory.uoregon.edu/telecom/directory.jsp?p=findpeople%2Ffind_results&m=student&d=person&b=name&s=Lindy+Mabuya@@ Schally was concerned that if this transfer wasn’t documented through Program Finance Committee, they may be given too much next year as well.
“We asked them to return the money if they had too much, and they did that,” Sen. and PFC member Katherine DuPont said.@@http://asuo/senate.php?a=30@@
Eventually, the money was returned. The next group asking to return money was Mock Trial. Earlier this year, the group was given money to go to Invitationals.@@http://law.uoregon.edu/org/mootc/@@ However, they were unable to go because the money was too late, and their registration was denied.
Now, they are planning on going to regionals and have made most of the money they need for the trip through fundraisers. The presenters said they wanted to return $2,230.
The request was approved and the money returned. All of these special requests went as planned, but one in particular warranted a long discussion.
The American Marketing Association requested $10,167.70 for a conference.@@wow@@ The request brought up questions of spending surplus money too early.
“This happens every year,” Sen. Kaitlyn Lange said. “We give out too much money too early and then get stuck spring term.”
Senators discussed postponing the vote to see if the group could do more fundraising efforts. Sen. Emma Newman@@http://directory.uoregon.edu/telecom/directory.jsp?p=findpeople%2Ffind_results&m=student&d=person&b=name&s=Emma+Newman@@ was concerned that the price of tickets would go up significantly in a week or two. She suggested giving them enough money to book flights now as a stopgap.
“I think it’s wiser to spend student dollars now and be more fiscally responsible than waiting a week,” Newman said.
After a lengthy discussion, the group was not awarded the money. They were told to come back next week with a more detailed plan for fundraising.