The Student Government Senate passed the Freshman Council Selections and Vacancies Act and confirmed Charles Esparza to the position of Senator At-Large during its Jan. 27 meeting.
Through legislative clarification, the act seeks to overturn the Supreme Court’s opinion that Freshman Council must have a minimum of 20 members to conduct business. Currently, the council has 18 members.
The act would allow the council to recruit at least 15 members and continue to operate with no less than 10, it would also allow the use of alternate candidates in the event of a vacancy.
Since the Supreme Court’s ruling on Dec. 4, Freshman Council has been unable to conduct business within Student Government and according to the bill is “a detriment to the inclusion of freshman perspectives.”
“If the Supreme Court makes a ruling that the Senate disagrees with then it is almost the Senate’s responsibility to change the law…I think the important thing here is that we are training freshmen to stay engaged,” Senator Eduardo Camargo said.
Included in old business was the resolution to confirm sophomore Charles Esparza to the position of Senator At-Large. Esparaza says his primary concern is ensuring that transgender students are comfortable on campus.
“I think as a trans person I can share some insight that a lot of our trans students are feeling,” Esparza said.
The President’s nominations of Teona Dimitrovska, Diego Hurtado, Cecilio Lopez and Maria Herrera were also confirmed to the election board.
New business consisted of a series of proposed resolutions which included the support of ethical surveillance on campus, adding part-time staff to Texas State’s composting and waste management program Bobcat Blend, and the adoption of affordable learning materials on campus.
Also among the resolutions was a call for the sale of alcoholic beverages at George’s in the LBJ Student Center authored by senator Jacob Cleveland. If passed, it would allow for the sale of beverages such as beer and wine. According to the bill, George’s would likely receive an increase in attendance and overall sales in return.
Vice President Tucker Thompson provided an update on Bobcat Bounty confirming that the on-campus food bank will be moving to its permanent location in the LBJ Student Center by fall 2020.
Student Government meetings are open to the public and are held every Monday at 7 p.m. in the LBJ Teaching Theater. The meeting agenda and resolutions can be found on the Student Government website.