Associated Students President Charlie Arreola is planning to veto the establishment of the Human Rights Council as an A.S. board.
At last Wednesday’s A.S. Legislative Council meeting, members approved the instatement of the HRC as an A.S. entity by a 20-1 vote. Arreola is expected to release a statement tomorrow regarding his veto of the creation of the A.S. Human Rights Board.
Under the A.S. legal code, the President has the power to veto legislation passed by the Legislative Council if he or she does so within two business days of its adoption. In addition, the president is required to release a statement explaining the reasons for the veto within three business days of the legislation’s passage.
Arreola did not return calls for comment as of press time.
According to HRC Director Nicolas Pascal, Arreola’s decision to veto the bill surprised him.
“I’ve been speaking with many member of the Human Rights Council, all of whom have expressed confusion and disappointment in Charlie Arreola’s seemingly bizarre decision,” Pascal said. “We haven’t yet received even one justification for his veto of an incredibly popular initiative that was passed with only one dissenting vote.”
Internal Vice President Chris Wendle, meanwhile, said he did not know the reasoning behind Arreola’s veto.
“I don’t really know anything about it,” Wendle said. “I would really just wait for Charlie’s release because I don’t really know much about his decision.”
As per the legal code, any legislation vetoed by the president will be automatically placed on the next week’s Legislative Council agenda. The council can override the veto by a two-thirds vote.
On-Campus Representative Jasmine Davenport, who authored the HRC bill, said the council has not yet taken a stance in response to the veto.
“The Legislative Council is not really sure right now where we stand,” Davenport said. “Obviously I don’t agree with it because I was the author of the bill. I am willing to work with him and other leadership of A.S. to better the bill and better the board.”
