The 76th Associated Students Senate adopted its final pieces of legislation at its last meeting on May 20, followed by the swearing in of the 77th cohort of executives and senators.
Omar Opeyany requested the Senate consider making the temporary student safety committee a permanent entity following the recent rape and strangulation on university property. Sherine John / Daily Nexus
Public Forum
Former Senator and fourth-year political science and philosophy double major Dan Siddiqui requested that the Senate acknowledge his contribution to two pieces of legislation adopted this year. According to Siddiqui, the ideas for the bill to revitalize the academic focus of the Internal Vice President’s (IVP) office and the bill to standardize Associated Students (A.S.) departments and Boards, Committees and Units (BCU) were included in his transition documents after serving in the 75th Senate.
Additionally, Siddiqui noted the major problems he witnessed within A.S., one being a “lack of adequate staffing and advising.” Siddiqui claimed that there is no centralized training for new A.S. staff on anti-discrimination laws or general management. He also said the 75th senate had to deal with multiple staff members taking extended leaves of absence.
Furthermore, Siddiqui raised concerns over a lack of A.S. autonomy due to University overreach. He said that A.S. exists in the context of all United States universities which are “under attack” by the Trump administration, and that UC Santa Barbara has shown “covert attempts to control student leadership,” in order to protect themselves from lawsuits.
Reports
Police and Community Affairs Board Liaison for the Office of the External Vice President for Local Affairs and fourth-year sociology major Omar Opeyany requested the Senate consider making the temporary student safety committee a permanent entity following the recent rape and strangulation on university property. Opeyany stressed the importance of constant student communication with law enforcement and expressed concern that the committee did not convene this quarter.
Legislation Passed
The Senate adopted a resolution calling for increased funding for financial support and professional development programs for undocumented students. The resolution specifically calls on the University and A.S. to continue funding the Monarch Opportunity Scholars Program, the DreamFresh Program, the Meal Plan Scholarship Program and the Grocery Voucher program. Additionally, the Senate adopted a resolution calling on the University to guarantee housing for undocumented students.
Both resolutions mirror UCSB’s chapter of the Young Democratic Socialists of America (YDSA) ongoing sanctuary campus campaign demands which include continued funding of the DreamFresh Program and guaranteed undocumented student housing.
Next, the Senate adopted a bill to revise the office of the A.S. president’s legal code. This includes several changes, notably the addition of a basic needs commissioner.
The Senate then adopted a bill which changes the eligibility requirements for Senate Finance Committee chair to be any student with at least three quarters of finance committee experience, regardless of whether they are a senator.
After, a bill to codify the A.S. Project Tracker into the IVP’s office legal code was adopted. The project tracker, currently in use, records all association projects in order to avoid repetitive projects.
Next, the Senate adopted a bill to create the A.S. Professional Services Unit which aims to support internal compliance with business contracts, aid A.S. in its strategic vision and support the development of enterprise.
Lastly, the Senate approved job descriptions for four new staff that A.S. will begin to recruit for this summer. The Senate did not approve the advisor for marginalized BCUs as the job description is still being decided.
Financial Motions
The Senate allocated $486.86 to the cycle safety kits project which will distribute free first aid kits for cyclists.
After the last meeting of their term, the A.S. executives swore in their successors and the 77th A.S. Senate. Wynne Bendell / Daily Nexus
Swearing in
After the Senate finished the last meeting of their term, the A.S. executives swore in their successors for the 2026-27 academic year. Then, freshly sworn in IVP and third-year sociology and psychological & brain sciences double major Vicky Ly swore in the new cohort of senators for the 77th A.S. Senate.
A version of this article appeared on p. 3 of the May 28 print edition of the Daily Nexus
