Los Angeles, CA – At the October 22nd meeting of the USG Senate, the Senate took up and passed four bills – SB 114-11, SB 144-12, SB 144-13, and SB 144-14.
The Senate passed SB 144-11: A Bill to Approve Legislative Funding for Laundry Accessibility by a 12-0 vote. Authored by Speaker of the Senate Diana Carpio, SB 144-11 will fulfill the request for $4,000 to help pilot the Laundry Stipend Project, aiming to begin by supporting a group of students in USC Housing and those with WASH-Connect laundry services with a $50 laundry stipend. The stipend will be distributed in phases, starting with students with the highest demonstrated financial need and extending to lower financial need.
“The Laundry Stipend Project received funding to assist 80 students with laundry services with approximately $50 each for the rest of the academic year. The laundry stipend received 331 applicants for this cycle and will go through a system of randomly selecting eligible students,” shared Speaker Carpio. “Any eligible student is an undergraduate who has access to WASH-Connect services and has filled out a complete application. The list of randomly selected students will go to the financial aid office to ensure that financial aid packages will not be negatively affected. Students should expect to hear back within the next few weeks after a complete review from campus partners.”
SB 144-12: A Resolution to Support the Implementation of a Time-Reduced Mandatory Sustainability Training Module urges the university to formulate an engaging 15-20 minute mandatory sustainability training module for students. The resolution was developed in collaboration with the Office of Sustainability and authored by Co-Executive Director of ESA Jon-Marc Burgess, Assistant Director of ESA Tiya Jain, and Director of Advocacy Ashley Halim. The Resolution passed unanimously, 12-0.
The Senate additionally took up SB 144-13: A Bill to Amend Open Forum in the Senate Meeting Rules. This bill updates SB 144-02 which was on a trial period that ends on October 29, 2024. Senators Jeremiah Boisrond and Patrick Nguyen brought SB 144-13 forward to make permanent changes to the Open Forum rules following the expiration of the trial period. The bill notes:
- Open Forum will be limited to 15 minutes but may be extended for an additional 15 minutes with a motion and majority Senate vote.
- Audience members are not allowed to be called on more than once. However, a motion and a majority vote by the Senate can extend an audience member’s time to a minute.
- After an audience member speaks, Senators have two minutes to respond, with a possible one-minute extension by motion.
- Senators may yield their time to a non-senator for a response if needed.
- A Senator’s response time is not restricted by the 15-minute Open Forum limit.
SB 144-13 passed by a 12-0 vote.
Finally, the Senate took up and approved SB 144-14: A Bill to Approve the Elections Code. Authored and presented to the Senate by Chief Justice Susanna Andryan and Associate Justice Papazyan, SB 144-14 amends the 2024-2025 Elections Code. The bill passed through roll call 11-1-0.
The October 1st Senate meeting also featured reports from President Bryan Fernandez Gonzalez, Chief Financial Officer Chisom Obioha, and Chief Programming Officer Hunter Black. Senator Jeremiah Boisrond, Senator Patrick Nguyen, and Chair of Sustainability and Campus Infrastructure Troy Nevil also provided presentations.
The USG Senate meets every Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. in TCC 450 (Tutor Forum). Every Senate meeting has an open forum. This is a space for any person to express ideas and/or concerns to the Senate in a verbal manner.
Upcoming USG Events
- LSA Mercado Troyano – Wednesday, October 23rd @ Alumni Park from 12-3 PM
- PSA Debate – Wednesday, October 23rd from 5:30-7:30 PM
- TSA Pumpkin Painting – Wednesday, October 23rd @ FG+SC Center from 6-7:30 PM