AS Senate Recap – 1/15/25

This recap first appeared in the January 20 edition of the KCSB News Weekly Newsletter.

The AS Senate is a group of elected student representatives which serves as the policy-making body of Associated Students. Every Wednesday at 6:30 PM, the AS Senate convenes to pass bills and resolutions, hear reports from Boards, Committees, and Units (BCUs), and hold public forum.

KCSB’s Joyce Chi brings you a recap of their latest meeting on January 15, 2025.

• There are plans to create a task force to respond to the LA wildfires. Attorney General Eric Carlson said this task force would provide things like financial and academic support, as well as material goods. The task force would be authorized through legislation and executive action by the AS President.

• A $30k project is in limbo. LinkedIn Learning would make various trainings in “software, creative, and business skills” available to students for less than $1, but AS President Nayali Broadway said contract issues have stalled implementation of this proposal, though she expects a new contract to be presented within the month.

• The Senate passed the following bills, resolutions, and motions:

• A Bill To Dissolve The Commission on Culture, Arts, & Joy Justice (Siddiqui – Iden)

• • • • This bill dissolves CCAJJ so that its funds can potentially be used by the AS Food Bank.
        • Senators Dan Siddiqui and Taylor Iden said they would meet with the Food Bank to further discuss how they’d use the funds, as the Senators felt their proposal was vague.
    • A Bill to Revise Eligibility Criteria for A.S. Funding of S.E.A.L. Student Groups (Singh – Elkhatib)
      • This bill allows new SEAL Student Groups (aka, Registered Campus Organizations) to apply for funding after five academic weeks following official recognition. The previous policy required a waiting period of one academic quarter.
    • A Bill to Mandate Publicity for Events with Food Provided by Associated Students (Singh – Elkhatib)
      • This bill requires campus organizations hosting events with AS-funded food to publicize those events widely.
      • Unlike the previous two bills, this piece of legislation did not pass with unanimous consent.
        • Senator Enri Lala abstained from voting: “I’m concerned that the bill was not specific enough about the criteria required from AS entities and those promoting their events.”
        • Senator Leah Khorsandi voted no: “I strongly disagree with fining students.”
          • (If campus organizations repeatedly violate this bill, they may be met with a $30 fine, their budget may be transferred out into the Senate Unallocated fund, or they may be prohibited from receiving any more AS funding for the rest of the quarter.)
      • Motion to partially fund the BlueLight Emergency Communication Towers to the tune of $25,485.
        • This proposal brought by EVPLA Owen Meyers and Senators Siddiqui and Aryaman Singh would see five BlueLight Towers placed through Isla Vista. These towers, which are already available on campus, allow a user to quickly contact law enforcement in case of an emergency.
        • The $25,485 sum finances the purchase of five BlueLight Towers. The proposal also requests $15,000 for maintenance costs and phone plans for each tower. Some of that $15,000 may be covered with help from the Isla Vista Tenants Union and the AS Program Board.

• The Senate tabled the following bills, resolutions, and motions:

• • A Resolution Demanding That the UCSB Administration Complete the San Benito Project Along Student Demands and Presented Timelines (Lala- Amin)
    • This resolution was tabled in order for edits to be made: changing “demand” to “request,” adding a section that’d create a town hall for students to ask questions about the project, etc.
  • A Bill to Amend AS Program Board By-Laws (Ganesh – Kadah)
    • This bill changes the structure of ASPB’s board and also more clearly defines the duties of its employees.
  • 2024/25 Elections Code Senate Version
    • Chair Caleb Hanson said that one of the biggest changes concerns recall elections. With these new updates, a recall election can be held so long as a recall petition gets enough signatures – i.e., the Senate wouldn’t have to authorize the recall election.
      • Last year’s Senate validated a recall petition against then-AS President Tessa Veksler, but ultimately voted to not hold a recall election.
    • Chair Hanson also said they’d be letting students decide whether or not to bring back political parties to AS elections. The plan is to include a constitutional amendment on the ballot during the Spring elections. 
    • There’s also discussion on how to schedule the elections while accommodating Passover (the current “campaign week” in Week 3 of Spring Quarter overlaps with this holiday). Chair Hanson said he’s been working with some Senators and the AS Jewish Commission to find a solution. 
      • This is what he thinks is the best option: having the Senate pass a resolution to allow soft campaigning (announcing candidacy, posting on social media) in Weeks 2 and 3, which would be followed by hard campaigning (anything where you’re physically present – ex. tabling in the Arbor) in Week 4. The AS Constitution requires the elections to be over by Week 5.

Access this week’s AS Senate agenda (which includes their bills and resolutions) using your student email here. You can see last week’s agenda here. Meetings are typically held each week at the Flying A Room of the University Center (Main Floor) throughout the quarter, aside from Week 10. You can also watch live and past meetings on Facebook here.