The decision to table Fair and Equal Access Bill frustrates those attending
The room was abuzz with chatter before the legislative meeting on Thursday night. The choice topic was, once again, the Fair and Equal Access Bill. Although there weren’t quite as many people as last week looking to speak during open forum, the public seating was filled.
The smaller cost centers including the Cultural Events Board, Student Legal Services, the Women’s Resource Center and Radio 1190 all presented the first reading of their budgets.
The election code was presented and the council spent nearly two hours arguing about the wording. After amendments to almost all of the sections of the code and much heated debate, the election code bill passed with a vote of 15-0-0.
There are only a few minor changes to the current election code. Students running for office will be on a points system for election infractions instead of there being different levels. A few days were added to the election timeline and students running as a team will now be allowed to have joint petitions on the ballot.
The biggest surprise came at the very end of the night when the second reading of the Fair and Equal Access Bill was skipped over completely. Because it was tabled the week before it still appeared on the agenda, but the bill will not be voted on until a member of the council motions to put it back in action. This means that it could stay tabled for as long as the council members see fit.
Once the crowd realized that the bill had not been addressed, many audience members were visibly upset.
Contact Campus Press Staffwriter Julia Yugel at Julia.Yugel@theCampusPress.com.
