To many students, Senate and the Associated Student Government are synonymous. But to the 14 students who serve on ASG committees but are not senators, the difference is clear.

“I just know what I feel from a student’s point of view, rather than being immersed in ASG,” said Meredith Levick, a member of the Academic Committee but not a senator.

Levick, a Weinberg freshman, joined the committee after the deadline to run for senator passed.

She said she doesn’t notice the difference between the senators and the non-senators on the 20-person committee — they all research and debate the same academic issues. But when it comes time for the Academic Committee to vote, she cannot participate.

Although the majority of ASG’s non-senators are allowed to vote, ASG bylaws prohibit them from voting on five of Senate’s eight committees, including the Academic Committee.

Overall, non-senators participate in six committees, discussing ways to improve the campus and researching background for legislation. Committees vote on which bills to send to the Rules Committee, which must approve the bills before Senate can vote on them.

Only senators are required to attend the Wednesday night Senate meetings and are allowed to vote on legislation.

Though most senators and ASG leaders agree that non-senators help ASG by importing an outside perspective, they think there should some limitations on their involvement and eligibility.

At Wednesday’s meeting, senators overwhelmingly failed a bill that would have allowed the Rules Committee’s one non-senator to participate as fully as other members.

When senators appeal to the committee to grant them an excuse for missing Senate meetings, the non-senator has to leave the room. She is allowed to debate which bills are sent to the Senate floor, but she’s not allowed to vote.

Rules Chairman Bassel Korkor, whose committee proposed the bill, said allowing the non-senator to vote on excusing senators could balance votes from senators who are either too serious or too easygoing when voting.

The non-senator’s presence on the committee also encourages the committee to approve external legislation that affects students instead of internal legislation, said Korkor, a Weinberg sophomore.

Opponents of the bill, which would have granted a maximum of two non-senators on the Rules Committee the same rights as senators, argued that the committee deals with issues that apply only to Senate.

“Non-senators aren’t in the position to make decisions on the fate of senators,” fraternity Sen. Srikanth Reddy said.

But both proponents and opponents of the bill said non-senator input is important to ASG.

“Once they have the same accountability that senators have on committees, I’m all for non-senator involvement,” said Reddy, a McCormick sophomore.

The non-senators on some of the committees do not have specific attendance requirements, and because committee chairs appoint them instead of Senate electing them, some senators have said non-senators are not held accountable enough to ASG.

But the non-senators on the Student Activities Finance Board and the Executive Committee are elected by Senate and are allowed to vote.

Nitin Wadhwani is a voting non-senator on SAFB, the committee with the most non-senators, but he said he doesn’t have enough time to be a senator.

“The non-senator positions are theoretically the most unbiased,” Wadhwani said. “You get a more well-rounded opinion.”

Student Services Vice President Laura Ellis said she is more forgiving when the non-senators on her committee miss meetings. Non-senators can debate on her committee, but if votes on legislation ever are close, then non-senators would not be able to vote.

Ellis said she and Academic Vice President Sameer Gafoor were discussing whether to grant voting privileges to non-senators on their committees, which write legislation aimed at improving students’ education and experiences on campus.