Article II: Legislative Branch

Section 1. Legislative powers.—All legislative powers of the Student Body shall be vested in the Student Senate.

Section 2. Membership & Apportionment.—

(a) The student senate shall have the power to reapportion itself through factual investigation by the senate according to published enrollment statistics provided by the university. The senate reserves the right to alter the allocation of seats among colleges and constituencies.

(b) The passage of the reapportionment recommendations will not take effect until after the following election cycle.

(c) The total membership of the senate will not exceed 30 senators, each with one vote, and each constituency enumerated in the bylaws is guaranteed at least one seat.

Section 3. Ad Hoc Members

(a) The Senate may appoint ad hoc members to represent a specific delegation, to serve an advisory and informational position to the senate for a specific issue.

(b) The Senate may appoint ad hoc members to staff standing and special committees.

Section 4. Officers of the student senate. -- All are elected by the senate body at the first meeting of the new term.

(a) The student senate speaker shall be the chief administrative officer of the legislative branch and preside over the student senate, and shall vote to break all ties.

(b) The parliamentarian shall serve as the chief procedural officer of the legislative branch, the chair of the Judicial Committee, and shall serve as the senate speaker pro tempore.

(c) The senate secretary shall serve as the chief clerical officer of the legislative branch, and coordinate correspondence between branches.

(d) The Senate shall elect chairpersons for their standing committees, per procedures enumerated in the Bylaws.

Section 5. Powers of the student senate.—The student senate shall have the power to:

(a) legislate its own rules of procedure, codified in the bylaws;

(b) determine the time and place of its meetings, provided that it meets at least once every two school weeks;

(d) provide for the elections of the SGA and its organizations;

(e) provide for the replacement of its members upon a vacancy in office;

(f) approve the annual budget, by two-thirds vote;

(g) approve resolutions representing the sentiment of the senate to the executive branch and the university community;

(h) approve contracts proposed by the executive branch, by two-thirds vote;

(i) approve appointments of the student body president to student government agencies and university committees;

(j) provide for the control and disbursement of Student Government funds;

(k) require information and/or appearance from any student government official or officer of any organization receiving student government funds;

(l) approve, by appropriate legislation, affiliations between student government and any organization;

(m) enact and amend all bylaws and constitutional provisions necessary and proper for the general well being of the student government; and

(n) have the right to meet in a closed session, by means of a two-thirds vote;

(o) exercise any other power or duty relegated to the legislative branch in the constitution or bylaws of the student government.

Section 6. Prohibitions.—The student senate shall not:

(a) enact any legislation in violation of the constitution;

(b) appropriate funds for a period of more than one year;

(d) deny speaking privileges in the student senate to any member of the executive branch, or any university administrative officer or college dean;

(e) conduct any non-electoral vote by secret ballot;

(f) enact any law embracing more than one subject and matter properly connected to that subject.

Section 7. Required Procedure.—

(a) All senators shall receive one vote on all legislation, with the exception of freshman senators. Freshman senators will receive one-third of a vote until the end of the fall semester, where the Senate shall vote to give grant them full voting rights.

(b) No legislation will be valid unless a student senator introduces the legislation, the legislation is read, and passes by majority vote of the student senate.

(c) No legislation except resolutions shall become enacted without the signature of the student body president, except when the student body president has not vetoed the legislation within ten days after presentation, in which case the resolution shall be enacted.

(d) Amendments to the constitution and bylaws shall not expire; resolutions must contain a clause pertaining to their duration, or will expire automatically upon the end of the term.

(e) Vetoed legislation may be enacted if passed by a three-fourths vote of the members of the Student Senate present and voting on it for a second time.

(f) Quorum necessary to conduct business shall be a majority of the total membership of the student senate plus one;

(g) Legislation of the student senate shall only be classified as a(n):

(1) amendment to the constitution, subject to veto;

(2) bill to the bylaws, requiring a majority vote for passage, subject to veto;

(3) resolution, an expression of the sentiment of the student senate requiring a majority vote for passage, not subject to veto;

(4) annual budget, considered legislation, requiring a two-thirds vote for passage, subject to line item veto;

Section 8. Committees. –

(a) The Senate shall empower the following standing committees and joint committees to complete all necessary preparations and execution of the business of the student government association:

(1) Student Life

(2) Finance (joint)

(3) Judicial

(4) Public Relations

(5) Elections (joint)

(b) The senate speaker shall have the power to create special committees to carry out a prescribed function for a predetermined duration.

(c) The senate speaker shall have the power to reapportion committees, appoint senators to committees, and compel committee reports.

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