NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY STUDENT SENATE

88^TH SESSION, 2008-2009

 

Government Bill 37

 

A BILL TO BE ENTILED AN ACT MODIFY ELECTIONS STATUTES

 

 

Short Title: 2009 Elections Reform Act

Sponsors: Pro Tem Rogers; Senators Webb(corresponding), Cooper, Donnelly, Clark, Lindh,

     Gregory

Signatories: Senior Class President Compton, Elections Commission Chair Tucker

Referred to:  Committee on  Elections Reform

Version: (insert either committee version, as amended by Senate, etc.)

First Reading:                                                                                    Second Reading:

 

 

WHEREAS, there must be continual improvement to the elections statutes to produce the best

elections possible, now therefore be it;

 

ENACTED,    by the North Carolina State University Student Senate that:

 

Section 1.        Statutory Authority.  This bill is adopted pursuant to the provisions of Article II, Sections 5(d) and 5(e) of the Student Body Constitution, and Chapter 2, Rule 17(b)(3) of the Student Body Statutes.

 

Section 2.      The entirety of Chapter 7 shall be reviewed, and all errors relating to sequential section and list numbering shall be corrected.

  

Section 3.       Student Body Statutes §7-1.16 ("Qualifications for Student Senator Candidates") shall be amended as follows:

                       

                        §7-1.16. Qualifications for Student Senator Candidates.

(a)    Candidates must be currently enrolled in the constituency from which they seek election. Candidates shall run for their current classification, unless they are a Freshman, Sophomore, or Junior, in which case they shall run one classification greater than their current classification.

(b)   Those candidates who are currently enrolled in multiple colleges shall be given the option of choosing which college they seek election to. In exercising this option, the candidate must adhere to SBS §7-1.23.

(c)    A candidate may run in a college different from that in which they are currently enrolled if they can show by written University documentation that they will be in that college next academic year. Similarly, a candidate may provide proof of remaining in their current classification, and seek a seat associated with that standing. Candidates petitioning under this subsection waive their right to vote for themselves.

(d)   For the purposes of first-year Senate seats, a student shall be considered first-year if they enrolled in the University after the date of the immediate previous Fall General Election

 

Section 4.       Student Body Statutes §7-3.4 ("Reporting Alleged Violations") shall be amended as follows:

§7-3.4. Reporting Alleged Violations.

All reports of violations shall be submitted in writing to the Student Government Office no later than two (2) full class days after the violation allegedly occurred. A report shall be sent to Elections Commission Chair and a hard copy shall also be sent to the Student Government Advisor. The report must include the time, date and location of the alleged violation and must bear the name, email, and phone number of the person reporting the alleged violation. If a date cannot be firmly established, the Elections Commission is empowered to make a determination if the report was filed in a timely manner. Any candidate accused of a violation shall be notified by the Elections Commission within twenty-four (24) hours

 

Section 5.       Student Body Statutes §7-3.8 ("Fines") shall be amended as follows:

 

§7-3.8. Fines.

(a) The Commission shall be empowered to assess fines on candidates concurrent with warnings, if the Commission believes the violation was particularly blatant or damaging to the elections.

(b) Fines shall not exceed one hundred dollars ($100). The fine will not be deducted from the campaign spending limit. All proceeds from fines shall be deposited in to the Student Body Funds, and shall be set aside for defrayment of the cost of future elections.

 

 

Section 6.       Student Body Statutes §7-4.6 ("Handbills") shall be amended as follows:

 

§7-4.6. Handbills.

Handbills shall be considered any objects with campaign information that are typically delivered by hand to a voter. No handbills may be piled in a public place with the intention that voters will pick them up except outside of organized forums of debate and discussion, where permitted by forum organizers and made available to all candidates. Any campaign found in violation of this statute will be subject to a minimum fine at the discretion of the Elections Commission. Any fine is subject to SBS §7-3.8(b).

 

Section 7.        Student Body Statutes §7-4.25. (“Joint Expenses”) shall be struck and be amended as follows:

§7-4.25. Joint Campaign Expenses .

All candidates wishing to run in a joint campaign shall file a joint campaign notification to the Election Commission prior to books closing.  The joint campaign will be held liable for any actions of individual candidates listed on the joint campaign. Joint campaigns may file a single joint campaign expense report. No candidate for a Student Body election may form a joint campaign with a non-student body election.

 

Section 8.        Student Body Statutes §7-4.18. (“Spending Limits”) shall be struck in its entirety and be replaced with:

 

§7-4.18. Financial Reporting

 

Spending Limits – Candidates may spend no more than the following in the general election:

 

Student Body President: $750

Student Senate President: $625

Student Body Treasurer: $625

Student Chief Justice: $625

Senator: $200

Other Elective Offices: $300

Departmental Level Offices: $100

 

These spending limits may be changed if all candidates for a given office unanimously agree to raise or lower the limit.

 

All Campaigns shall submit complete and open financial and spending reports.   The report shall contain:

(a) All expenses made by the campaign on behalf of the campaign, whether used or not, shall be reported.

(b) Copies of all receipts shall be made available to all students both in the Student Government office and online, with originals available upon request.

(c) All receipts must contain an accurate phone number for the business where the items were purchased or donated from

(d) All donations with donating entity disclosed, as regulated by §7-4.19 and the value of all donations shall be subtracted from the spending limit of the respective campaign.

(e) Any in-kind donations of materials shall be noted as such and shall include half their value if bought new

(f) Any campaign materials that are re-used shall be noted as such and shall include half their value if bought new

(g) A listing and quantities of materials made with the intended purpose of advertising the candidate or candidate’s campaign

(h) Any donation of time by non-fee paying students all other services shall be document as such at fair market value

(i) Any items that are print on personal or non-charging equipment shall be noted as such and expensed at fair market value encompassing all costs associated

(j) Any vehicle that is used, as a campaign advertisement only gas shall be expensed and hours of use shall be reported

(k) Expenses made by non-student government campaign oriented registered student organizations do not have to be reported, unless made under the express direction of the campaign.

(l) Each report shall include totals of direct expenses, in-kind donations, re-used materials, and cash/cash-equivalent donations. 

           

Section 9.        Student Body Statutes §7-4.19. (“Standard Rate Expenses”) shall be struck in its entirety and be replaced with:

 

                        §7-4.19. Regulation of Fundraising.

(a) Disclosure of Funding Sources Required. All campaigns shall disclose, as part of their financial reports, the source of all campaign funds, including cash and in-kind contributions. No campaign shall knowingly participate in any scheme to obfuscate or otherwise conceal the actual source of funds.

(b) Regulation of Fundraising Activities . Activities designed primarily to raise funds for a campaign shall be expressly exempted from the Official Campaign Start restrictions. All fundraising events, and online solicitation shall be  submitted to the Elections Commission for approval at least three (6) days before the event date.  No fundraising events shall take place 30 prior to books opening. In the event a majority of statutory Elections Commission members is not appointed and approved, the Government Operations Committee has the authority to authorize such events. To qualify for this exemption, the activity must be clearly labeled as a fundraiser and funds must be sought from substantially all of the participants therein. Advertisement of a fundraiser is permissible 3 days prior to the fundraiser, and is limited to stating the candidate’s name and other biographical facts, the office to sought, the nature of the fundraiser, and that the activity is a fundraiser.

(c) Disposition of Campaign Funds. Following a campaign, campaign funds not expended shall either be returned pro-rata to donors or contributed to one or more other student government campaigns. Loans to campaigns may be handled on their own terms.

 

Section 10.      Student Body Statutes §7-4.20 ("Frequency of Expense Reports") shall be amended as follows:

 

§7-4.20. Frequency of Expense Reports.

(a) Candidates shall be required to submit an expense report by 5:00 PM each Monday class day between the All Candidates meeting and last general or run-off election they are a candidate in. Such a report must be accurate as of least 5:00PM the preceding Friday and include at least all expenses since the last report.   All campaigns for any campus wide or class wide position shall submit a weekly expense reports.

(b) Candidates shall submit a final expense report no later than 9:00 AM the day after polls have closed. Such a report shall be comprehensive of all expenses of the campaign, regardless of date of expenditure.  No candidate shall assume office until the final campaign expense sheet has been submitted and inspected.

 

Section 11.      Student Body Statutes §7-4.24. ("Penalties Concerning Expenses”) shall be amended as follows:

 

§7-4.24. Penalties Concerning Expenses.

(a) Failure to submit expense reports on time shall be a violation, and shall be brought to the attention of the commission by the chair.

(b) Upon the receipt of each expense report, the Chair shall designate himself or herself, or another member of the Commission to review the report. The reviewer shall inspect each item in the report, seeking clarification from the campaign as necessary, and shall report any issues of concern to the full commission for consideration.

(c) Falsifying information in an expense report is punishable by the Judicial Board and grounds for a direct disqualification hearing.

(d) Exceeding the expense limit for the campaign will result in a direct disqualification hearing.

 

Section 12.      This bill is effective upon enrollment.