The 76th Associated Students Senate considered a proposal to install security cameras across campus at its April 15 meeting.
Attorney General caseworkers discussed plans to install security cameras around campus to deter bike theft. Shengyu Zhang / Daily Nexus
Public Forum
Second-year psychological and brain sciences majors and caseworkers in the Associated Students (A.S.) Office of the Attorney General (AG), Alex Kim and Oliver Ramirez Carrera, discussed upcoming plans to install security cameras at bike racks across campus. Multiple senators raised the concerns they have heard from students about privacy and enforcement implications surrounding cameras on campus.
“The main concerns are typically protections for undocumented students, infringing on privacy and use for minor drug infractions,” Senator and second-year history of policy, law, and governance major Romi Riss said.
The caseworkers asserted that the cameras would be used solely to deter bike theft. Kim further stated that security cameras have already been installed around Santa Catalina Hall as a pilot program, but will soon be removed. She requested that the Senate provide funding for the campus-wide project.
Carrera went on to discuss other AG initiatives, including updating the dispute process on Gaucho Online-Data (G.O.L.D.), creating a standalone G.O.L.D. app and conducting an audit of the Recreation Center.
Next, fourth-year sociology major Molly Mascal spoke out against a proposed amendment to Article X of A.S. Legal Code, governing Boards, Committees and Units (BCUs) autonomy. The proposed amendment requires a two-thirds majority vote and would grant the Senate the authority to issue binding financial and operational directives to BCUs, irrespective of BCU approval. Mascal argued that the change would undermine BCU autonomy and grant the Senate excessive authority. The bill was later rejected in a 3-12 vote with one abstention.
Legislation Proposed
Senator and fourth-year sociology major Mira Than proposed a bill to update A.S. Standing Policy 22, which outlines clear procedures for food expenditures to combat overspending within the Association. The bill was referred to the liaison committee.
Next, Senator and fourth-year history of policy, law, and governance major Vanessa Manakova proposed a bill to establish Standing Policy 39 to create a quarterly staff feedback form and establish student concern reporting procedures. Each BCU is assigned a staff advisor to help assist them during meetings and other A.S. procedures. With this form, BCU members will be able to give feedback on their advisor. The bill was referred to the liaison committee.
Legislation Passed
The Senate approved placing a new constitutional amendment on A.S. fee provisions for empty BCUs on the spring election ballot. If passed, the amendment will pause fees for BCUs that have had an entirely unfilled board for two years, and cancel them if unfilled for four years. Voting began Monday and is set to end on Thursday, April 23.
Next, the Senate adopted a bill to create the A.S. Future Leaders in Governance Fellowship, which will train fellows in A.S. policies and procedures while connecting students with California elected officials.
Financial Motions
The Senate approved the allocation of $197,000 to fund the Michael Ma Bloomberg Terminal Project, which will bring professional business and economics data tools to UC Santa Barbara. The project was originally introduced by Internal Vice President and fourth-year global studies and history double major Enri Lala to honor a close friend, Michael Ma, an economics student who passed away in a car accident.
A version of this article appeared on p. 3 of the April 23 print edition of the Daily Nexus.
