Senators have a crowded agenda for tonight’s Associated Student Government meeting. The Senate will hear six new proposals and vote on four others, including bills to increase student group funding.
Four final votes
Two of the four proposals up for vote at this week’s meeting deal with increasing the Student Activities Fee, which raises about $1 million every year to fund student groups and ASG’s budget. Students pay the $120 fee annually along with tuition. The first proposal asks the Board of Trustees to raise the fee to $135.90 over the next three years to account for inflation and increased need by student groups. The fee would increase by $6 in 2006-07, $6 in 2007-08 and $3.90 in 2008-09.
The second proposal asks for 1.5 percent of the fee to go to funding up to 65 additional student groups, known as B- and T-status groups. Currently only 39 groups, known as A-status groups, are eligible for funding from the fee.
Another bill asks for the creation of nine $150 grants for B- and T-status groups.
The final bill calls for crosswalk improvements around campus, including a signal at the intersection by The Arch that would display how long pedestrians have to cross before the light changes.
Budget proposal
ASG’s proposed budget will take effect in the fall. It asks for about $71,000 to pay for expenses such as office supplies, an ASG retreat and two activities fairs. The proposed budget divides ASG’s expenses into 13 different categories to make the budget more transparent, ASG Treasurer Ivy LeTourneau, a SESP sophomore, previously told The Daily.
The current budget, covering the 2005-06 school year, is divided into six categories and amounts to about $81,000.
Senators will hear the proposal at tonight’s meeting but will not yet vote on it or modify it.
Constitutional amendment
The proposed amendment to ASG’s constitution would prevent further changes to the charter without involvement from the Northwestern student body.
The proposal would require future changes to win a two-thirds vote from the Senate and a majority vote from at least 500 undergraduate students in a referendum. Current changes need only a two-thirds vote from the Senate to pass.
New bills
The Senate also will hear four new bills, which they will vote on next week. The first asks for the NU purchasing department to treat student groups similarly to academic departments so they could receive items like fax machines or printers when other departments are throwing them out.
Other bills ask for the advancement of the Latino Studies program, the creation of a student newsletter and the creation of a transcript that would record students’ extracurricular activities.
Reach Nitesh Srivastava at [email protected].
