GOVERNMENT BILL 76

 

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

An act to Revise the student body elective process

 

BE IT ENACTED by the North Carolina State University Student Senate that:

 

Section 1.        Student Body Statutes §7-1.3(d) shall be amended by striking:

 

General Elections: First Monday and Tuesday in April. 

 

            and inserting:

 

General Elections:  First class Monday and Tuesday ten (10) regularly scheduled class days after Spring Break.

 

Section 2.        Student Body Statutes §7-1.8B shall be amended by adding:

 

At no point shall the Leader of the Pack contest be subject to any form or manner of runoff election, nor requirements for majority polling.

 

Section 3.        Student Body Statutes §7-1.9 shall be amended by striking:

 

No student barred from service per SBS §2-2 shall be eligible to seek a Student Government position.

 

Section 4.        Student Body Statutes §7-1.16 shall be amended by striking:

 

To be considered qualified, the candidate must furnish the Commission with written notice from The Director of Constituency Programs that such a meeting has occurred with his or her intent-to-run form.

 

Section 5.        Student Body Statutes §7-1.20 shall be amended by striking:

 

Students shall be permitted to seek any number of elective positions, provided that they would be permitted to serve simultaneously in all position sought if elected to all.

 

 

            and inserting:

 

Students shall be permitted to seek any number of elective positions, provided that they would not be prohibited by the Student Body Constitution, Student Body Statutes, or Union Constitution to serve simultaneously in all positions sought if elected to all.

 

Section 6.        Student Body Statutes §7-1.21 shall be amended by sticking

 

Any Candidate may file a written petition with the Board of Elections to withdraw from candidacy. Such a petition must be filed by 5:00 PM the Wednesday prior to the election to provide the Commission time to authenticate the petition prior to the finalization of the ballot. All such petitions shall be granted unless the Commission finds that granting it would substantially impair a fair election.

 

            and inserting:

 

Any Candidate may file a written petition with the Board of Elections to withdraw from candidacy. Such a petition must be filed by 5:00 PM the Tuesday prior to the election to provide the Commission time to authenticate the petition prior to the finalization of the ballot. All such petitions shall be granted unless the Commission finds that granting it would substantially impair a fair election.

 

Section 7.        Student Body Statutes §7-1 shall be amended by inserting:

 

§7-1.22 Final Ballot

The Elections Commission shall publish a final ballot by 9AM Thursday prior to any election, which shall contain the exact form of all questions before the electorate, and candidates in all races.  Under no circumstances may this ballot be altered prior to or during polling.  The Elections Commission shall publish a draft of the final ballot at least 24 hours prior to the publication of the final ballot for any given election.

 

Section 8.        Student Body Statutes §7-2.2 shall be amended by striking:

 

The Elections Commission shall have the basic duty to ensure a fair and appropriate Student Body Election. The Commission shall be comprised of a chair (SBS §7-2.8) and eight (8) commissioners, who shall be students appointed by the Student Body President at least four (4) weeks prior to the date of elections books opening, subject to the simple majority confirmation of the Senate.

 

            and inserting:

 

The Elections Commission shall have the basic duty to ensure a free and fair Student Body Election.  The Commission shall be comprised of chair (SBS §7-2.9) and eight (8) commissioners, who shall be students appointed by the Student Body President, subject to the simple majority confirmation of the Senate.  Four (4) of these appointments shall be made by the incoming Student Body President, within two (2) weeks of his assumption of office, and the remainder shall be made no later than Sunday prior to the first Senate meeting of the fall semester.

 

Section 9.        Student Body Statutes §7-2.9 shall be amended by striking:

 

The Chair of the Elections Commission shall be considered a Student Government Official. The Student Body President shall appoint the Chair at least six (6) weeks prior to the date of elections books opening, subject to the simple majority confirmation of the Senate. Such an appointment shall not be confirmed at the meeting at which the appointment is announced. In addition to any specific requirements, the Chair of the Commission shall meet all requirements for service as Commissioner, as listed in SBS §7-2.3.

 

            and inserting:

 

The Chair of the Elections Commission shall be considered a Student Government Official.  The outgoing Student Body President shall appoint the Chair no later than one week prior to the first Student Senate meeting of a new session subject to the simple majority confirmation of the Senate.  Such an appointment shall not be confirmed at the meeting at which the appointment is announced.  In addition to any specific requirements, the Chair of the Commission shall meet all requirements for service as Commissioner, as listed in SBS §7-2.3.

 

Section 10.      Student Body Statutes §7-2.11(a) by striking:

 

The Student Body President shall appoint a replacement Chair per §7-2.8, when no elections cycle is in progress.

 

            and inserting:

 

The Student Body President shall appoint a replacement Chair per §3-1.8, when no elections cycle is in progress.

 

Section 11.      Student Body Statutes §7-2.16 shall be amended by striking:

 

The Student Body President shall appoint two (2) students with suitable background in UNIX server administration by the date books open for the General Election. These students shall be considered Elections Assistants and shall be responsible for:

(a.)  Maintenance and setup of the Student Government Election Server and related programs and systems;

(b.)  Access to the computing environment of the Student Government Election Server;

(c.)  Provide a written report to the Senate at the conclusion of the Election Cycle on any technical problems which occurred.

 

            and inserting:

 

The Student Body President shall appoint two (2) students of sufficient technical competence to operate the online voting program no later than the 10^th class day of the Fall Semester.  These students shall be considered Elections Assistants and shall be responsible for running the online elections program under the supervision of the Elections Commission. 

 

Section 12.      Student Body Statutes §7-2.19 shall be amended by striking:

 

                        e. Members of the Senate Standing Committee on Government Operations;

 

Section 13.      Student Body Statutes §7-2.23 shall be amended by striking:

 

The commission shall request the assistance of the Wolf Aide Program.

 

Section 14.      Student Body Statutes §7-2.31 shall be amended by striking:

 

The commission shall remove all campaign materials in the unity labs on the day of the elections.

 

            and inserting:

 

The commission shall remove all campaign materials in the unity labs on the days of the elections.

 

Section 15.      Student Body Statutes §7-3.11 shall be amended by striking:

 

(a.)Notifications are not subject to appeal;

(b.)Warnings may be appealed to the Commission for re-hearing;

(c.)Disqualification may be appealed a judicial panel per §7-3.13.

 

            and inserting:

 

(a)        All decisions from violation hearings may be appealed to the Commission for re-hearing.

(b)       Disqualification, or substantive errors in the Disqualification Hearing, may be appealed to a judicial panel per §7-3.18.

 

Section 16.      Student Body Statutes §7-3.12 shall be amended by striking:

 

§7-3.12. Re-hearing of Warnings.

Should a candidate receiving a warning believe the Commission acted without all pertinent information, he or she may petition for re-hearing of the warning by the Commission. Such a petition must state what additional information is to be presented. Upon receipt of such a petition, the Chair of the Commission shall schedule a re-hearing. The re-hearing shall be conducted under the same procedure as the initial hearing, except that it shall be conducted in absentia only if the Commission rules the candidate is absent to deliberately frustrate process.

 

            and inserting:

 

§7-3.12. Re-hearing of Warnings.

Should any concerned student believe that the Commission acted without all pertinent information in deciding a violation hearing, he or she may petition for a re-hearing of the warning by the Commission.  Such a petition must state what additional information is to be presented.  Upon receipt of such a petition, the Chair of the Commission shall schedule a re-hearing.  The re-hearing shall be conducted under the same procedure as the initial hearing except that it shall be conducted in absentia only if the Commission rules the candidate is absent to deliberately frustrate the process.

 

Section 17.      Student Body Statutes §7-3.18 shall be amended by adding:

 

                            (e)  Substantial errors during the disqualification process.

 

Section 18.      Student Body Statutes §7-4.4 shall be amended by striking:

 

§7-4.4. All Candidates Meeting Attendance.

Any person who fails to attend the All Candidates Meeting or to send a designated alternate will be required to present valid excuse to the Commission or will lose his or her place on the ballot.

 

Section 19.      Student Body Statutes §7-4.5 shall be amended by adding:

 

At no point shall a candidate use a generally available university supply in such a way as to frustrate its use by other candidates and the general student population.  No candidate shall make use of a university supply unless that same use is allowed to all other candidates in the same race.

 

Section 20.      Student Body Statutes §7-4.7 shall be amended by striking:

 

without permission from the official in charge of the premises.

 

            and inserting:

 

except outside of organized forums of debate and discussion, where permitted by forum organizers and made available to all candidates.

 

Section 21.      Student Body Statutes §7-4.9 shall be amended by striking:

 

All sandwich boards must be displayed outdoors and should be properly secured.

 

            and inserting:

 

All sandwich boards must be displayed outdoors and should be freestanding and secured if necessary to prevent a safety hazard to the general public.  Size and shape of sandwich boards must adhere to standards stated in the elections packet.

 

Section 22.      Student Body Statutes §7-4 shall be amended by inserting:

 

§7-4.17 Bribery and Coercion of Elections Officials

At no time shall any candidate or their agent, attempt to bribe, coerce, intimidate, or otherwise attempt to unduly influence any Elections Official.  This includes, but is not limited to, promise or suggestion of appointment or re-appointment to positions of authority, threats to socially or politically ostracize an Elections Official, transfer of funds, goods, or services to an Elections Official where it is a departure from ordinarily accepted behavior, and intimations of physical violence against any Elections Official.   All violations of this regulation shall be forwarded to the Office of Student Conduct, as well as adjudicated through the violation process. 

 

Section 23.      Student body Statutes §7-6.1 shall be amended by adding:

 

subject to the majority approval of the Committee on Government Operations.  Any changes to the packet approved by the Committee on Government Operations in this manner shall take effect immediately, and shall amend the packet in the Appendix.

 

Section 24.      Student Body Statutes §3-1.7 shall be amended by striking:

 

This clause shall not apply to the appointment of the Elections Commission and its Chair
 (SBS §7-2).

 

Section 25.      This act shall be effective upon its enrollment.

 

 

I hereby certify that this bill was read twice and adopted by consent in the North Carolina State University Student Senate, this 16^th day of January 2004.

 

 

______________________________________________

Erich M. Fabricius

Student Senate President

 

 

I hereby signify my approval of this bill as adopted by the North Carolina State University Student Senate, this _______ day of ____________, 2004.

 

 

______________________________________________

Tony Caravano

Student Body President

 

I hereby certify that the tenth day has elapsed since presentment of this bill to the Student Body President, and without communication from the President, the bill is thereby enrolled, this 27^th day of January 2004.

 

 

______________________________________________

Erich M. Fabricius

Student Senate President