The Associated Students of Colorado State University convened Aug. 22 for the second session of the 54th senate.
During executive reports, President Nick DeSalvo provided updates on ongoing initiatives in the Colorado General Assembly; Director of Basic Needs Jorja Whyte summarized upcoming department events; Director of Finance Tangia Zheng educated senate on financial processes; and Director of Public Relations Joseph Godshall described new public relations policies designed to increase ASCSU’s visibility.
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Judicial reports followed, where Chief Justice Morgan Wright reminded senators of the supreme court opinion process.
Senate then ratified former Associate Justice Sam Abadie as the newest deputy chief justice, where he will be responsible for assisting the chief justice in all supreme court processes, including branch-sponsored events and issuing supreme court decisions.
The newest associate justices were also nominated, rounding out the court. Daniel Scott Perez, Sara Kiros and Katelyn Brennan were all unanimously ratified.
The executive branch also nominated and ratified Hailey Rageth as the newest deputy director of governmental affairs. The governmental affairs department receives $24,500 annually from the executive budget, $16,000 of which is dedicated to employing a contract lobbyist in the Colorado General Assembly.
Senate then moved to ratify the newest members of the Board for Student Organization Funding, which uses ASCSU revenue to fund campus events for registered student organizations. The DeSalvo-Dietz administration increased the 2024-25 BSOF budget to $175,000 after funding ran out during the 53rd senate.
Senate then reintroduced and unanimously passed Bill #5402, “The Humanity and Community Act.”
The legislation was originally introduced and passed during the April 24 session of the 53rd senate; however, the bill failed after DeSalvo “pocket vetoed” the bill by refusing to formally sign the legislation. The bill was reintroduced during an emergency session of the 54th senate the following week, during which it passed unanimously.
Because two academic weeks have not passed since the bill was reintroduced and pocketed for the summer, the legislative authors were able to reintroduce the legislation, which formally called for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war. The bill passed with unanimous consent.
“History will remember what we did and, importantly, what we did not do in this moment,” former Chair Emeritus of the Accessibility Caucus Sammy Trout said.
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Moving into new business, Resolution #5401, “ASCSU Senate Bylaws,” was introduced. The resolution makes several minor updates to the existing bylaws, which must be confirmed annually.
The resolution, as with the rest of the session’s legislation, will move to the legislative committees for further review.
Bill #5403, “54th Senate Job Descriptions,” was also introduced. The legislation confirmed the newest iteration of the senate job descriptions. Several edits to office hour requirements and the disciplinary process are among the changes.
Lex #5401, “Creation of a Senate Marketing Officer,” was then introduced. The legislative author, Speaker of the Senate Hayden Taylor, believes a dedicated marketing officer in the senate will boost recruitment and retention efforts for the legislative branch.
The remaining pieces of legislation were then abruptly tabled for review in a future session.
ASCSU senate will resume Aug. 28.
Reach Sam Hutton at news@collegian.com or on Twitter @Sam_Hut14.
