The Associated Students 75th Senate discussed holding the University accountable for building new housing, restructuring senate positions, creating changes in the elections board schedule and dissolving the Public Safety Commission at its Jan. 22 meeting.

Third-year history major Enri Lala and fourth-year sociology major Jasmine Amin authored a bill requesting that UC Santa Barbara administration complete the San Benito Housing project by fall 2027 and present a timeline to the public. In accordance with the Long Range Development Plan (LRDP), the project aims to add approximately 2,225 apartment-style beds for undergraduate students.

Senators voted to unanimously pass the bill, also requesting that administration maintain the undergraduate enrollment cap of 25,000 promised in the LRDP.

“The housing crisis is the issue most directly affecting students’ quality of life over the last several decades; and, … A significant aspect of the crisis is defined by returning students’ inability to find on-campus housing,” the bill read. “The further delay or termination of the project will exacerbate the significant issues faced by students facing housing instability and local stakeholders in Goleta and Santa Barbara.”

Lala, along with fourth-year economics and communication double major Taylor Iden, also presented a bill requesting transparency from the University regarding Ocean Road Housing. The project was slated to contribute to fulfill UCSB’s LRDP commitment to establishing 540 new housing units for faculty and staff along the western boundary of UCSB’s main campus by 2025.

“Students and other local stakeholders have faced significant challenges in accessing updated information regarding the Ocean Rd. housing project and its impacts on campus and Isla Vista life,” the bill read.

The bill asks administration to provide quarterly reports regarding the timeline, which should be made accessible to students and local stakeholders, as well as yearly town halls to address community concerns until the project is completed. The bill passed unanimously in a senate vote.

Senators also discussed dissolving the Public Safety Commission, an Associated Students (A.S.) entity dedicated to “all safety issues concerning the student body as well as increasing student relations” with local law enforcement, according to its website. The bill states the group has been inactive for “a significant amount of time” and proposes reallocating its $15,900 budget to the Senate. The bill was tabled for one week and will be discussed at the next senate meeting.

Third-year political science and philosophy double major Dan Siddiqui and Iden proposed an amendment to the A.S. Constitution to increase the amount of votes necessary to create a new student fee, as expressed in Article V. The previous amount of votes required was one vote over half of the Senate to pass, but now the amendment raises the voting threshold to 75% of the Senate or higher. 

The change would also apply to votes to increase student fees. In addition, senators proposed that lock-in fees must be put up for reaffirmation every year, as opposed to the current every-other-year schedule. 

To be reaffirmed, fees must receive a vote of 66% or higher, as opposed to the one over half threshold. The amendment passed with a vote of 15 to one, with one abstention. 

The amendment was proposed to control A.S. lock-in fee accumulation. Siddiqui stated that there are “10 million dollars” sitting in an A.S. account without allocation. He suggested putting leftover A.S. funds back in the pockets of students to help with things like housing affordability. 

“Considering the fact that we have almost 10 million dollars in roll-over and carried forward money in a suspense account, the consistent accumulation of student fees over time has rendered them unable to be able to actually, tangibly benefit students,” Siddiqui said.

Siddiqui and Iden also proposed an amendment to reformat the Senate going forward, primarily shrinking the overall size of the Senate by reducing the number of senators from 27 to 18. Siddiqui and Iden also advocated for assigning senators to specific departments, arguing that having a set number of senators to represent the entire College of Letters and Science was too broad.

The article would cut the amount of senators and provide them all with staff members to help them manage their workloads. Currently, only the Senate pro-tempores are able to hire a staff.

The update was deliberated upon at length, with senators discussing the optimal number of senators. The proposal was tabled to be discussed at the next Senate meeting.

The third amendment proposed by Siddiqui and Iden aimed to reform “the structure of the Association to function more like an actual government,” by increasing the powers of the A.S. president and internal vice president.

This includes giving the vice president primary responsibility over financial matters. It also includes a section giving the president the responsibility to “work closely” with administrators and executives like the chancellor “to advance undergraduate student priorities through policy and funding changes.”

Second-year global studies major Leah Khorsandi, second-year biology major Dalia Gerson and Lala proposed an amendment to Article X of the A.S. Constitution, allowing for potential extensions to the general A.S. election period. 

Currently general elections must conclude by Week 5 of spring quarter. The amendment would allow for the Senate and Election Boards, with consultation from the A.S. executive director, to extend the deadline to Week 7 if needed. 

This amendment is meant to accommodate future religious holidays or natural disasters that may prevent students from campaigning for office sufficiently.

“Passover, one of the holiest Jewish holidays, always overlaps with campaigning, and Jewish students who observe Passover, it puts them at a really strong disadvantage,” Khorsandi said.

The amendment was tabled for discussion at the next meeting.

A version of this article appeared on p. 3 of the Jan. 30, 2025 edition of the Daily Nexus.

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Anushka Ghosh Dastidar
Anushka Ghosh Dastidar (she/her) is the Lead News Editor for the 2024-25 school year. Previously, Ghosh Dastidar was the Community Outreach News Editor for the 2023-24 school year and the Assistant News Editor for the 2022-2023 school year. She can be reached at anushkagd@dailynexus.com or news@dailynexus.com.