The Fairfield University Student Association Senate failed to override the veto of a bill that would require a member of every Executive Board to attend every General Senate Meeting at the GSM on Feb. 13.
The FUSA Senate meeting opened with Lauren Oemcke ‘20 asking, “Is anyone allergic to nuts?”
The GSM featured director of treasury Thomas Urciuoli ‘19 answering questions from senators about the state of the FUSA Budget. Senator Tyler Heffern ‘22 began the questioning by asking about the allocation of funds within the budget.
Central to the questioning of Urciuoli was the issue of the Red Sea Madness ticket sales.
Urcioli admitted, “That was obviously a loss to FUSA” in regards to RSM, which put FUSA in debt because they did not sell as many tickets as planned. Urcioli did not expect the lack of attendance at RSM to become a pattern.
Senator Ali Haidar ‘21, who was the original sponsor of the executive board bill, spoke in favor of overriding the veto. Oemcke challenged the override arguing that members of the executive branch never committed to attending GSMs.
“FUSA isn’t everyone’s life here,” said Oemcke.
The gallery included the heads of every board within the Executive Branch except for the Council of Student Organizations. On the other side of the gallery were students, who booed and applauded during debate.
The veto override failed to pass, earning 3 ayes, 15 nays and 1 abstention. Senators Robert George ‘19, Ali Haidar ‘21, and Sarah Bowden ‘22 voted to override. After the veto override failed, most of the students in the gallery departed.
FUSA also passed a resolution recognizing Black History Month with a unanimous vote.
Another bill sponsored by Haidar, which was originally on the agenda but not debated at the Jan. 30 meeting, regarded FUSA’s rights to freedom of expression as an organization. One facet of the bill debated by senators was FUSA’s right to boycott, Haidar explained that FUSA should have the power to boycott companies who don’t align with the Jesuit values.
The freedom of expression bill narrowly passed with 9 ayes, 4 nays and 6 abstentions.
The Senate also voted on a resolution to open a constitutional convention that would rewrite the FUSA constitution. This resolution passed the senate. If three fourths of every title-holding member of FUSA vote yes, the constitutional convention will be held this semester.
There is not yet an agreed-upon procedure for writing or passing a new constitution.
Leave a Reply