Student Government Association. Standing Rules

Transcription

1 Student Government Association Standing Rules UPDATED November 10, 2016

2 The Standing Rules of the General Assembly shall be enacted only upon a two-thirds majority vote of the General Assembly and only be active for the session. These rules must be followed by all officers of the Student Government Association can be amended with a twothirds vote of the General Assembly. Section 1: Bringing Forward Business A motion is the method of bringing business before the General Assembly. Once a motion is made, it is the property of the General Assembly and must run its course which means it can be approved, amended, tabled, or killed. To obtain the attention of the presiding officer, the member must raise their hand and wait to be recognized. Discussion will then take place under the rules for discussion that are explained in Section 2 of these standing rules. The standards of Robert s Rules of Order, Newly Revised shall always be followed, as prescribed by the Bylaws. Section 2: Discussion and Debate There is a difference between discussion and debate. Discussion is open time, with no rules governing it, that members may talk about an issue. Debate is the formal time when comments are public record. It is described below how to hold discussion and the procedures for debate. Discussion To hold discussion, a member must make a motion to suspend the rules. Suspending the rules takes a two-thirds majority without prior notice and simple majority with prior notice. Once the rules are suspended, it is open time to talk but the General Assembly must maintain decorum. Even though it is not necessary, the basic rules of debate should still be followed, as described later in this section. To come out of discussion, a member must make a motion to reinstate the rules, which only takes a simple majority. Debate In order to participate in debate, one must wait to be given the floor by the presiding officer after a motion is made. The mover is allowed to speak first and must speak in favor. The seconder may speak next and may speak in favor or opposition. A member may only speak once during debate and can only speak again if everyone who wants to speak has had a turn; the presiding officer is responsible to ensure no member speaks more than twice out of turn. A motion to limit debate is allowed at any point during debate, as well as motions to call the question. In debate, members may not address each other; all comments are made to the presiding officer. Points of Information (sometimes known as Points of Inquiry) are questions directed at a member and are not considered part of the speaking turn

3 Section 3: Attendance Member will be notified at least two weeks in advance if an event is mandatory. If the member wishes to miss an event, they must fill out an Absentee Request Form on OrgSync at least one week prior to the event. All excused absences will be granted by the Executive Vice President if the member applies for an excused absence at least one week prior to the event. If the Absentee Request Form is filled out under one week due to an emergency, the discretion of approval is fulfilled by the Executive Vice President. The executive officers may only be excused by a majority vote of the General Assembly. A member may appeal the decision on an absence to the court within two weeks of the event. Committee Attendance Every member of SGA shall serve on at least one standing committee and one other committee of their choice. Section 4: Meeting Conduct No food and drinks must be in a closed container during General Assembly and electronics must be limited to SGA business. Dress code is business casual for all members. Executive Board can approve at their discretion causal days in which the top must be SGA logo and/or University logo, no other organizational affiliation. Section 5: Fiscal Procedures If the following fiscal procedures are not followed by a member, the member may be held responsible for any purchases made. This will be up to the discretion of the Dean of Students Office, and a hold will be put on the member s account for the amount that was spent not following the fiscal procedures. SGA Credit Card Officers who need to use the credit card may obtain it from the Dean of Student s office in UCE There are purchase limited on the card and a spending limit of $400 per purchase. When done using the card, return it to the Dean of Student s office within 24 hours. Purchase Approval Form The Purchase Approval Form will be available on OrgSync and must be filled out for any purchase. If the purchase is under $400, the CFO must approve the form before the purchase can be made. It is the responsibility of the CFO to approve the form within 24 hours of it being submitted on OrgSync. If the purchase is greater than $400, it must be brought forth to the General Assembly and pass with a two-thirds vote before the purchase can be made

4 Receipt Upload Form The Receipt Upload Form will be available on OrgSync and must be filled out for any purchase along with an attached photocopy of the receipt. This form must be completed within the month in which the purchase is made. Section 6: Office Policy The office is for SGA work so be respectful when others are doing SGA business. Conduct in the office is the same as conduct in the community when representing SGA. Keep the office and the contents within clean: cleaning supplies are kept in the break room. Keep the main office door open if you re in the office. Close it when you are the last to leave. When guests visit, be kind and helpful. If you cannot help them, give them the contact information of another officer who can. Office Hours Record your office hours with the timesheets on OrgSync. Office hours must be submitted by Saturday at 11:59 PM of that week to which the office hours are to be applied. Student Representatives must complete one roaming office hour weekly. Section 7: Special Committees Special Committees are committees of the Student Government Association, created by the General Assembly, that do not derive their authority from the Bylaws. The following are the special committees of the Student Government Association for the session. Food Services A committee shall be formed that will review and improve issues related to Sodexo through open discussion with management, will maintain a close working relationship with the USI Student Board of Directors for Sodexo, and strive to improve the dining experience on campus. The AVP for University Affairs shall serve as or appoint a chairman with an unlimited number of students serving as members. Cultural and Social Issues A committee shall be formed to address cultural and social issues on campus, maintain contact with The Multicultural Center, International Programs, the center for Religious Life and - 3 -

5 assist in enacting events to be awareness and address needs. The AVP for Social and Cultural issues shall serve as or appoint a chairman with an unlimited number of students serving as members. Section 8: Chromebook Policy SGA has six (6) ASUS Chromebooks and these shall be the guidelines regarding them: The Executive Board shall have the responsibility of custody the Chromebooks in their office when not in use and they assume full responsibility of the Chromebook when in their procession. If a general member wishes to check out a Chromebook, the member must give at least a week s notice to the Executive Board for a Chromebook transfer. The student will coordinate with the Executive Board to schedule a transfer of a Chromebook. An Executive Board member may not refuse the transfer of a Chromebook unless it conflicts with a scheduled SGA event for the Executive Board member that he/she must have the Chromebook for their event. In order for the general member to acquire the Chromebook, he/she must give the Executive Board member their USI Student ID and the Executive Board member will keep the general member s ID in their office until after the member has returned the Chromebook back to the Executive Board. Once the student hands over their ID to the Executive Board member, they assume full responsibility for anything that happens to the Chromebook. The general member may only keep the Chromebook for the duration of their event and may not relocate it off of USI s campus. One student may only check out one Chromebook with their ID