Carnegie Mellon University
Student Senate Bylaws
Amended May 1, 2001
I. Purpose and Scope
A. The function of these Bylaws is to establish structures and operating procedures for those undergraduate institutions created in the Constitution of the Student Body
B. Any dispute between these Bylaws and the Constitution shall be settled in favor of the Constitution, which is the supreme document of the Student Body of Carnegie Mellon University
C. Duties of Student Senate
1. Meet at least once each complete month of the academic year, with none of these meetings being held during the final exam periods or vacations
2. Make available all records of its proceedings to the campus community
3. Break a tie in any undergraduate election by a majority vote
A. Powers of Student Senate. Student Senate may:
1. Appropriate and approve the expenditures of all funds under the sole control of the Student Senate
2. With the Graduate Student Assembly, appropriate and approve the expenditures of all funds under the joint control of the two bodies, as prescribed in the Constitution of the Student Body of Carnegie Mellon University
3. Grant, revoke, and modify recognition of student organizations
4. Override a Presidential veto by a two-thirds (2/3) vote at the regular Student Senate meeting following the Chair's reading of the veto
5. Enact and enforce legislation aimed at accomplishing the objectives of the Student Body, as stated in the Constitution of the Student Body of Carnegie Mellon University
II. Membership
A. Representation
1. The Undergraduate Student Body shall be divided into the following constituencies:
a. Carnegie Institute of Technology
b. College of Fine Arts
c. College of Humanities and Social Sciences
d. School of Industrial Administration
e. Mellon College of Science
f. School of Computer Science
g. Bachelor of Humanities and Arts/Miscellaneous Students
1. A member of the Undergraduate Student Body shall be classified as a constituent in one (1) of the above listed constituencies in accordance with his home college at Carnegie Mellon University, as ascertained from the university registrar
2. Any member of the Undergraduate Student Body who does not fall under the auspices of constituencies a through g listed above shall be classified into constituency g, Bachelor of Humanities and Arts/Miscellaneous Students
3. Undergraduates entering an integrated graduate program at Carnegie Mellon University may represent their undergraduate constituency during the initial year of the program
4. Each constituency shall be represented either by one (1) senator or by one (1) senator for every one-hundred forty (140) constituents or majority fraction thereof, whichever is greater.
A. Student Senators
1. Student Senators shall normally be elected by a plurality vote of the members of their respective constituencies. The only exception to this shall be the filling of vacant Student Senate seats.
2. Attendance
a. If a Student Senator misses, in one (1) session, two (2) regular meetings of Student Senate, the Chair must notify that Student Senator that if he misses another meeting during that session, that he shall be removed from office.
b. If a Student Senator misses, in one (1) session, two (2) regular meetings of the standing internal committee to which he is assigned, the committee chair shall notify that Student Senator that if he misses another regular committee meeting during that session, that the committee chair shall notify the Chair of Student Senate, who shall remove the offending Student Senator.
c. Alternates and absence counting
(1) An alternate is a member of the Student Senator’s constituency who is not a member of Student Government and is designated in advance via a memo to the Chair of Student Senate by the Student Senator to sit in for him at a Student Senate regular meeting or at a meeting of his assigned standing internal committee
(2) An alternate has the parliamentary privileges of a Student Senator
(3) A Student Senator may send an alternate no more than four times (4) each month, twice (2) to regular Student Senate meetings and twice (2) to meetings of his assigned standing internal committee
(4) A meeting at which neither the Student Senator nor his designated alternate appears shall count as one (1) absence
(5) A meeting at which the Student Senator, or his designated alternate, appears but is not present at the beginning of committee reports shall count as one-half (½) absence
(6) A meeting at which the Student Senator, or his designated alternate, appears but is not present at the beginning of Points of Discussion shall count as one-half (½) absence
(7) Should a Student Senator’s standing internal committee assignment change during a session of Student Senate, his attendance record shall follow him to his new committee
3. If a Student Senator changes constituencies after he is elected, he shall serve the remainder of the current session in the constituency from which he was elected.
B. Members-at-large
1. A Member-at-large shall be a non-voting member of Student Senate and one of its internal committees, functioning to bring additional views to Student Senate.
2. Members-at-large may be nominated by any Student Senator during the New Business portion of any regular Student Senate meeting. Approval of a Member-at-large shall require a majority vote.
3. Attendance
a. If a Member-at-large misses four (4) regular meetings of Student Senate in one (1) session, the Chair must notify that member-at-large that if he misses one more meeting during that session, he shall be removed from office.
b. Absence counting
(1) A meeting at which a Member-at-large does not appear shall count as one (1) absence
(2) If a Member-at-large misses four (4) regular meetings of the standing internal committee to which he is assigned in one (1) session, the committee Chair shall notify that member-at-large that if he misses another meeting during that session, the committee Chair shall notify the Chair of Student Senate, who shall remove the offending Member-at-large
(3) A meeting at which a Member-at-large appears but is not present at the beginning of committee reports shall count as one-half (½) absence
(4) A meeting at which a Member-at-large appears but is not present at the beginning of Points of Discussion shall count as one-half (½) absence
c. Members-at-large possess no parliamentary rights, but the rights to: (1) call for the orders of the day; (2) raise a point of order; (3) raise a question of privilege; (4) raise a point of information; (5) raise a point of parliamentary inquiry; (6) and speak in debate.
A. Ex-officio members
1. The following shall be ex-officio members of Student Senate:
a. President of the Student Body
b. Vice President of the Student Body
c. Treasurer of the Student Body
d. Faculty Senate representative
e. Student Affairs representative
f. Greek Council representative
g. Student Dormitory Council representative
h. Graduate Student Assembly representative
i. Activities Board representative
2. Ex-officio members shall hold the parliamentary privileges of a Member-at-large.
3. Ex-officio members shall each be given a period during Student Senate meetings to present reports to Student Senate.
B. Removal
1. Any Senator may be impeached by either of the following methods:
a. A two-thirds (2/3) vote of Student Senate
b. Petition
(1) A petition containing the printed names, signatures, and Carnegie Mellon e-mail addresses of either one-hundred (100) members or one-quarter (¼) of the Senator’s constituency shall be sufficient to initiate impeachment hearings
(2) The Executive Committee shall validate any such petition within one (1) week of its submission.
1. Removal of Senators
a. After receiving a request for impeachment, the Chair of Student Senate shall announce the impeachment request, along with the reasons for the impeachment, at the first regular Student Senate meeting occurring at least one (1) week after receipt of the impeachment request. In the event that the request names the Chair of Student Senate, the President of the Student Body shall handle the impeachment request.
b. Impeachment hearings shall take place at the first regular meeting following the announcement of the request for impeachment, at which three-fourths (¾) of the Student Senators are present.
c. A three-fourths (¾) vote of the Senators present at the impeachment hearing shall be sufficient to remove the Senator from office.
d. A removed Senator is not eligible to hold any Student Government position for a period of one (1) year from the date of removal from office.
1. A Member-at-large may be removed at any regular Student Senate meeting by a majority vote, but is not subject to subsection d, above.
A. Vacant Student Senate Seats
1. Should a Student Senate seat become vacant, the Chair of Student Senate shall announce this vacancy, along with the deadline for receipt of petitions to fill the seat, during Announcements at the Student Senate meeting at which the seat becomes vacant.
2. To be considered for a vacant seat, a member of the Undergraduate Student Body must:
a. Be a member of the constituency represented by the vacant seat
b. Submit a valid petition
(1) A valid petition shall contain the printed names, signatures, and Carnegie Mellon e-mail addresses of twenty-five (25) members or one-quarter (¼) of the candidate's constituency. Late petitions shall not be accepted.
(2) Any one (1) signature may appear on as many petitions as there are vacant seats for that constituency; if the signature appears on more than that number of petitions, it is invalid on all petitions
(3) The Executive Committee of Student Senate shall validate all petitions received on time within five (5) school days of submission. If at least two (2) members of the Executive Committee agree that a petition is not valid, then that petition is not valid.
1. If no petition is received before the deadline set by the Chair, the announcement process as detailed above shall be executed again
2. If more than one (1) petition is received and validated, Student Senate shall install one of the validated petitioners in the seat by a majority vote
III. Structure
A. Student Senate shall divide itself into the following standing internal committees:
1. Academic Affairs Committee
2. Campus Affairs Committee
3. Funding and Recognition Committee
4. Public Relations Committee
5. Internal Affairs Committee
A. Chair of Student Senate
1. The Chair shall not be a regular member of any standing internal committee.
2. Duties of the Chair:
a. Appoint clerks to Student Senate
b. Assign Student Senators and Members-at-large to standing internal committees, pending the approval of a majority of the Executive Committee of Student Senate.
c. Schedule regular meetings of Student Senate and of the Executive Committee of Student Senate.
d. Determine the order of business for regular meetings of Student Senate and of the Executive Committee of Student Senate.
e. Preside over all regular Student Senate meetings and meetings of the Executive Committee of Student Senate
f. Appoint a parliamentarian to Student Senate, who, if a member of Student Senate, shall retain his full parliamentary privileges
g. Be an ex-officio of all standing internal committees.
4. Powers of the Chair. The Chair may:
a. Form ad hoc committees of Student Senate with the approval of the Executive Committee of Student Senate
b. Remove Student Senators for violation of the attendance requirements
c. Remove Members-at-large for violation of the attendance requirements
d. In the event of a vacant internally elected office which cannot be duly filled, appoint an acting official who shall carry out the duties of said office while it remains vacant.
e. Nominate a Vice Chair from the voting membership of Student Senate
C. Vice Chair of Student Senate
1. A majority vote of Student Senate shall be required to approve the nomination, after which the Vice Chair shall serve during the remainder of the Chair’s term.
2. The Vice Chair shall not be a regular member of a standing internal committee and shall be a non-voting member of the Executive Committee of Student Senate.
3. Duties of the Vice Chair
a. Act as the Chair at any Student Senate meeting at which the Chair is not present
b. Serve as acting Chair of Student Senate in the event that the Chair’s position is vacant, until a new Chair is elected
c. Assist the Chair with Student Senate matters as deemed necessary by the Chair
d. Decide which standing internal committee shall assume responsibility for matters not assigned to a particular committee by Student Senate
e. Coordinate inter-committee transfers on matters requiring the action of more than one committee
f. Report to the Student Senate the failure of a standing internal committee to act upon matters assigned to it
g. Be an ex-officio member of all standing internal committees.
D. Chairs of Standing Internal Committees
1. Duties of the chairs of standing internal committees:
a. Keep a current record of attendance at committee meetings and submit these records to the Chair of Student Senate upon request
b. Provide a written report of activities of the committee during the session to the Chair of Student Senate at the last Student Senate meeting of the session
c. Schedule regular meetings of the committee
d. Determine the order of business for the meetings of the committee
e. Appoint a Vice Chair to act in the absence of the Chair
f. Report committee activities to Student Senate at regular meetings.
A. Sergeant at Arms
1. The Sergeant at Arms shall be elected from among the membership of Student Senate
2. Duties of the Sergeant at Arms
a. Care for and maintain the physical properties and office of Student Senate, including the joint properties of student organizations
b. Acquire meeting places for Student Senate, its committees, and its events, upon the request of any chair
c. Attend all meetings of Student Senate and assist the Chair in maintaining order in the chambers
A. Election of Internally Elected Officials
1. The Chair of Student Senate and the chairs of the standing internal committees shall be Student Senators and shall be elected by majority vote of Student Senate. The Sergeant at Arms shall be a member of Student Senate and shall be elected by majority vote.
2. At every Student Senate meeting at which an internally elected office is vacant, elections to fill said office shall be held. These elected officials shall serve for the remainder of the session in which they are elected.
A. Removal of Internally Elected Officials
1. The internally elected officials of Student Senate may be removed for incompetence or apathy.
2. To initiate removal proceedings, a petition signed by at least one-half (½) of Student Senators shall be presented to the President of the Student Body asking for removal of an elected official from that official’s elected post.
3. At the regular Student Senate meeting immediately following presentation of the petition, Senate shall vote on removal of the official. Removal of the Chair of Student Senate or a Chair of a standing internal committee shall require a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the Student Senators present.
4. Upon a successful vote to remove an official, the office shall immediately be declared vacant.
B. Any elected official may resign by submitting his resignation to the Chair of Student Senate, who must notify Student Senate of the resignation at the next meeting of Student Senate.
C. Student Senate Standing Internal Committees
1. Membership
a. Except as contradicted in these Bylaws, all Student Senators and Members-at-large shall be a regular member of exactly one standing internal committee of Student Senate
b. All regular members of a standing internal committee are permitted to vote on matters addressed in that committee
c. Only regular members of a committee are counted toward quorum
1. Committee Selection
a. Following each election, each Student Senator and Member-at-large shall indicate their preference for committee assignments, in order of preference
b. The size of the committees shall be determined by the Chair of the Student Senate in consultation with the chairs of the standing internal committees
c. The Chair of Student Senate shall determine committee assignments from the list of preferences and the recommendations of the members of the Executive Committee of Student Senate
d. A Member-at-large may not be a member of the Funding and Recognition Committee
1. Rules of Standing Internal Committees
a. Each committee shall fix regular meeting times for the transaction of business before the committee
b. All business before committees of Student Senate at the end of one session shall be resumed at the commencement of the next session
1. Duties of the Academic Affairs Committee
a. Propose legislation concerning the academic welfare of the Student Body
b. Announce to Student Senate any changes or proposed changes in academic policy
c. Designate a representative to the University Academic Calendar Committee
d. Function as the liaison to the University Education Council, the Associate Provost for Academic Projects, and Enrollment Services
e. Take responsibility for any business charged to it by Student Senate
1. Duties of the Campus Affairs Committee
a. Propose legislation concerning the campus environment as it relates to the Student Body
b. Announce to Student Senate any changes or proposed changes in auxiliary services
c. Function as the liaison to the Division of Student Affairs
d. Maintain the Poster Policy
e. Be responsible to review and suggest amendments to the policies contained in the Student Handbook and act as the liaison between Student Senate and Faculty Senate on university policy amendments passed by Student Senate
f. Take responsibility for any business charged to it by Student Senate
1. Duties of the Funding and Recognition Committee
a. Make recommendations to Student Senate on the funding and recognition of student organizations within the guidelines set forth by Student Senate in these Bylaws
b. Recommend only those expenditures that are justified by their contributions to the Student Body
c. Conduct annual reviews of the recognized organizations to see if they are within the bounds of these Bylaws and the Constitution of the Student Body
d. Make at least five (5) nominations for membership in the Joint Funding Committee at the initial election each semester
e. Maintain the Student Senate Fiscal Policy
f. Take responsibility for any business charged to it by Student Senate
1. Powers of the Funding and Recognition Committee. The Funding and Recognition Committee may:
a. Review all budgetary categories of any organization
b. Through the Chair of the Funding and Recognition Committee:
(1) Freeze accounts. Within one (1) week of freezing any funds, the Chair of the Funding and Recognition Committee shall notify the Funding and Recognition Committee.
(2) Schedule an audit and collect inventories
(3) Subpoena financial records involving funds allocated by Student Senate
1. Duties of the Public Relations Committee
a. Publicize all Student Senate activities, including elections and Student Senate vacancies
b. Plan and coordinate Student Senate involvement in special events such as the Activities Fair, Homecoming, and Spring Carnival
c. Take responsibility for any business charged to it by Student Senate
1. Duties of the Internal Affairs Committee
a. Plan and coordinate educational workshops and seminars for Student Senate and its standing internal committees
b. Maintain records of Student Senate transactions over the course of each session
c. Ensure that the Sergeant at Arms maintains the Student Senate office in a clean and orderly condition
d. Ensure that each Student Senator is provided with the most up-to-date version of these Bylaws, Constitution of the Student Body, and other rules of Student Senate
e. Consider legislation, petitions, and other matters relating to the Student Senate Bylaws, the Constitution of the Student Body, and non-specific rules and regulations
f. Maintain the Student Senate Election Rules
g. Take responsibility for any business charged to it by Student Senate
IV. The Executive Committee of Student Senate
A. The voting membership of the Executive Committee of Student Senate shall consist of the Chair of Student Senate and the chairs of each of the standing internal committees of Student Senate. The Vice Chair of Student Senate shall be an ex-officio member of the Executive Committee.
B. Duties of the Executive Committee
1. Meet at least once each month of the academic year excluding vacations and final exam periods
2. Oversee the activities of all organizations that are on probation.
3. Meet once during each month of the academic year with the executive committee of the Graduate Student Assembly
C. Powers of the Executive Committee. The Executive Committee may:
1. Issue interpretations of these Bylaws as necessary.
2. Temporarily suspend recognition of an organization on reasonable suspicion that the organization is in violation of these Bylaws
V. Meetings
A. Special meetings
1. Only the Student Body President may call a special meeting of Student Senate.
2. The President must give notice of a special meeting at least seventy-two (72) hours prior to the designated meeting time.
3. Absences shall not be counted in special meetings.
B. Conduct of Business
1. Except where contradicted in these Bylaws, Student Senate shall conduct business in accordance with Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised.
2. Introduction of legislation
a. Legislation which has already been approved by a committee of Student Senate may be acted upon by Student Senate at the next regular meeting.
b. Legislation which has not passed through a standing internal committee of Student Senate may not be acted upon during the Student Senate meeting in which it is introduced unless a motion to act immediately upon the legislation carries by a two-thirds (2/3) vote.
c. All motions and amendments shall be reduced to writing, if desired by the Chair or by any Senator, and shall be read before the same shall be debated.
d. The Funding and Recognition Committee shall not report an appropriation bill proposing new or general legislation, and if such an appropriation bill is reported to the Senate, a point of order may be made against the bill, and if the point is sustained, the bill shall be recommitted to the Funding and Recognition Committee.
3. Voting
a. There shall be exactly four (4) distinct voting methods used by Student Senate. They are listed below in order of greatest precedence to lowest precedence:
(1) Roll call vote
(2) Hand vote
(3) Voice vote
(4) Acclamation (unanimous consent)
b. The Chair of Student Senate normally determines the manner of voting. However, if a Student Senator calls for a greater precedent method of voting for an individual question, that method must be used. If multiple requests are received, the request with the greatest precedence shall be honored.
c. A Senator shall decline to vote, in committee or on the floor, on any matter when he believes that his voting on such a matter would be a conflict of interest
C. Quorums
1. A quorum of Student Senate shall be defined as more than half of the seated voting Senators
2. If, at any time during a meeting of the Senate, a question shall be raised by any Senator as to the presence of a quorum, the Chair shall forthwith direct the Secretary to call the roll and shall announce the result, and these proceedings shall be without debate
3. If a Senator leaves a meeting, with no clear intention of returning, without the express permission of the Chair of Student Senate or of the Student Senate, and a quorum of the Student Senate is subsequently lost, that Senator shall be considered to be absent for the entire meeting
VI. Student Body Directives
A. The Undergraduate Student Body can force Student Senate to act on any matter by submitting a new issue petition in the form of a main motion.
1. A new issue petition must contain the signatures, printed names, and Carnegie Mellon e-mail addresses of at least fifty (50) members of the Undergraduate Student Body. The Executive Committee of Student Senate shall have one (1) week from receipt of the petition to validate that petition.
2. Once the petition has been validated, Student Senate must consider the question put forth in the petition. The question must be considered within two (2) weeks of petition validation.
B. The Undergraduate Student Body can compel Student Senate to reconsider any legislative vote taken within the previous thirty (30) days by submitting a reconsideration petition, which must contain the printed names, signatures, and Carnegie Mellon e-mail addresses of at least five (5) percent of the Activities Fee-paying members of the Undergraduate Student Body. The Executive Committee of Student Senate shall have one (1) week from the receipt of the petition to validate that petition. Upon such validation, reconsideration of the vote shall become a special order at the next Student Senate meeting.
C. The Undergraduate Student Body can rescind legislation passed by Student Senate by submitting a restraining petition
1. A restraining petition must contain the printed names, signatures, and Carnegie Mellon e-mail addresses of at least ten (10) percent of the Activities Fee-paying members of the Undergraduate Student Body.
2. A restraining petition must be submitted within ten (10) school days of the passage of the legislation.
3. The Executive Committee of Student Senate shall have one (1) week from the receipt of the petition to validate that petition
4. Should the petition be valid, the legislation then must be considered by the Undergraduate Student Body in a referendum
5. The results of the referendum shall be binding if at least fifteen (15) percent of the members of the Undergraduate Student Body vote on the referendum
6. A majority vote in the referendum shall be sufficient to rescind legislation passed by Student Senate
VII. Student Organizations
A. Student Senate Recognition. There shall be two types of Student Senate Recognition
1. Non-funded recognition entitles the holder to:
a. Reserve meeting places on campus
b. Set up displays in various campus buildings, subject to University regulations
c. Leaflet or petition on campus
d. Solicit special allocations from Student Senate. Organizations receiving non-funded recognition may not use the funds provided by Student Senate for political, religious, or academic purposes
2. Funded recognition
a. Only non-academic, non-political, and non-religious organizations may be recognized as funded
b. Political organizations are defined as groups whose primary aims are the support of, or opposition to, a particular party, candidate, or statute
c. A funded organization:
(1) Has all the privileges of a non-funded organization
(2) Has the right to solicit funds from the Student Government as restricted by the current fiscal policy
(3) May be required to provide income other than the Student Government subsidy
(4) May not use the funds provided by Student Government for political, religious, or academic purposes
A. Qualifications for Recognition
1. To become recognized, an organization must present a petition to the Chair of the Funding and Recognition Committee containing the following information:
a. The organization’s bylaws, which shall include all the required elements detailed in Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised
b. List of at least two (2) officers and their mailing addresses and phone numbers
c. Name of advisor (if any)
d. Authorized signatures for accounts
e. Source of funds (if any)
1. Student Senate will consider recognition of an organization based on the recommendation of the Funding and Recognition Committee
2. Should any of the information provided to Student Senate per subsection 1 (one) above change, the organization must immediately supply the Chair of the Funding and Recognition Committee with the change
A. Recognition of any organization shall be in effect unless revoked by a majority vote of the recognizing body
B. Student Government recognizes that there are other representative bodies that deal with specific types of issues. Student Government may work with these representative bodies on issues that fall within the scope of these respective bodies.
VIII. Student Senate Fiscal Policy
I. The Student Senate shall possess the sole authority to allocate its designated portion of the Undergraduate Activities Fees, as specified in the Constitution of the Student Body and the Student Senate Bylaws.
II. Funding Restrictions
A. Organizations may not request funds in the following categories:
1. Student Salaries
2. Alcohol
B. Organizations may spend money in the following categories only with the approval of a three-fourths (3/4) vote of the Student Senate:
1. Transportation
2. Travel expenses
3. Outside-organization membership dues
4. Taxes
5. Coaching expenses
6. Management and consulting fees
7. Subscriptions
8. Food and non-alcoholic beverages
9. Leasing of off-campus facilities.
C. All groups may be required to finance a portion of their budgets by supplementary income.
D. All of an organization's events which are financed by the Activities Fee must be germane to the primary purpose of the group.
III. In order to protect itself from financial loss, Student Senate is to keep an amount of its budget on reserve in a separate account. This contingency fund may only be used for covering a net deficit in the Student Senate account. This figure should be appropriately adjusted annually by the Funding and Recognition Committee to protect against any financial loss.
IV. The Funding and Recognition Committee reserves the right to remove the excess funds of an organization if the committee deems it necessary. The excess amount which can be removed shall not exceed the amount of any allocation granted by Student Senate.
V. For all organizations incurring a deficit, Student Senate shall bear financial responsibility only for an amount not to exceed the amount of money originally apportioned to the organization by Student Senate.
VI. Funding Disclosure Rule
A. If one hundred (100) percent of an organization’s or event’s budget is financed by the Activities Fee, then all advertising and printed material of that organization must include the phrase: “Funded by your Activities Fee”
B. If less than one hundred (100) percent of an organization’s or event’s budget is financed by the Activities Fee, then all advertising and printed material of that organization must include the phrase: “Funded in part by your Activities Fee”
VII. Loans for Charity Events.
A. All money up to and including the amount borrowed must be paid back before any donation can be made.
B. If an organization does not raise enough money to cover the amount borrowed, it shall be required to repay the remainder of the amount it borrowed through supplementary income.
C. Student Senate shall not grant a loan request if there is not reasonable assurance that the event shall raise enough money to repay the loan.
D. Student Senate shall decide upon a loan request only upon recommendation of the Funding and Recognition Committee.
E. Events which are discriminatory shall not receive funding.
VIII. No reimbursements to organizations for expenses incurred shall be made in excess of $50 and no organization may receive such a reimbursement more than five (5) times in one academic year except at the discretion of the Funding and Recognition Committee.
IX. Violations of Student Senate Fiscal Policy shall result in at least one of the following:
A. The immediate impoundment by the Funding and Recognition Committee of an organization's Student Senate-allocated funds and equipment, purchased by said funds, pending an investigation.
B. Probation. Groups on probation must submit to the following Probation Regulations:
1. Approval of Events
a) All of the organization's events must be approved by the Executive Committee of Student Senate.
b) Multiple events may be approved at one time.
c) This approval requirement applies to all postering, meetings, practices, or any other event conducted by the organization.
2. The Executive Committee of Student Senate reserves the right to commission an audit of the organization's financial records without notice.
3. Membership Information
a) The organization shall routinely report the number of Carnegie Mellon University students maintaining active membership in the organization to the Executive Committee of Student Senate. Routine reporting shall be defined as issuing a report at the time any change in the number of Carnegie Mellon students maintaining active membership status occurs.
b) The organization shall keep the Executive Committee of Student Senate supplied with a current list of names of all members of the organization who are not Carnegie Mellon students.
4. Violation of Probation Regulations
a) If the Executive Committee of Student Senate finds that an organization on probation violates these regulations, the Executive Committee shall suspend the recognition of that organization pending an investigation.
b) Within four (4) weeks of suspending recognition of an organization, the Executive Committee of Student Senate shall make recommendations to Student Senate concerning said organization. If Student Senate fails to concur with the suspension of recognition, the organization shall have its recognition reinstated.
C. Suspension of recognition
D. Change in recognition status
E. Warning, upon the first or a minor offense, only
X. Selling of equipment
A. Any plans to sell equipment purchased through an allocation by the Student Senate must be approved by the Funding and Recognition committee and Student Senate.
B. All money collected through the sale of equipment purchased through an allocation of Student Senate shall be returned to the Student Senate account unless otherwise redirected by Student Senate.
C. Student Senate shall accept the loss caused by depreciation on all equipment purchased through allocations of Student Senate.
XI. Student Senate shall neither be financially responsible nor required to reimburse an organization for loss of or damage to any property in the possession or care of any organization.
XII. Student Senate Budget
1. A motion to approve the Student Senate budget shall be presented to Student Senate before the end of each session
2. If the Student Senate budget is not approved by the end of a session, each internal committee will automatically receive 25 percent of their previous budget until a Student Senate budget is approved.
XIII. Student Senate can override or amend Student Senate Fiscal Policy, or any portion therein, with a two-thirds (2/3) vote, provided at least one (1) week's notice has been given of the proposed override or amendment.
I. The Activities Board
A. The Activities Board is an external committee of Student Senate which serves to coordinate events to entertain, educate, and enrich the lives of the entire campus community.
B. Student Senate recognizes the Constitution of the Activities Board.
C. The Activities Board Executive Chair shall be elected by the members of Activities Board, with the consent of two-thirds (2/3) of Student Senate.
D. The Activities Board Executive Chair, or his appointed representative, shall be an ex-officio member of Student Senate and shall make regular, timely reports to Student Senate on the events and matters being considered by the Activities Board.
E. Student Senate may remove the Activities Board Executive Chair according to the rules set down for the removal of elected officials of Student Senate in these Bylaws.
F. The Activities Board committees shall submit budgeting requests to the Joint Funding Committee.
II. Terms and Definitions
A. Notification of Student Senate or Student Senators shall be satisfied by a message posted on the official electronic bulletin board of Student Senate or by electronic mail
B. A session of Student Senate shall extend from the first regular meeting following the ratification of election results until the adjournment of the meeting at which the next semester's election results are ratified
C. Approval, unless otherwise noted, shall consist of a majority vote of the members present from the respective body
D. A two-thirds (2/3) vote, unless otherwise noted, will be satisfied by an affirmative vote of two-thirds (2/3) of the Student Senators present at any particular meeting
I. Amendment
A. Proposed amendments to these Bylaws must be submitted in writing to the Student Senate at a regular meeting of Student Senate
B. The Executive Committee of Student Senate must make a recommendation on the proposed amendments within one (1) week after the meeting at which the proposal for amendment was submitted
C. The proposed amendments must be considered by Student Senate at the next regular Student Senate meeting after which the proposal for amendment was submitted
D. To be adopted, an amendment must receive a two-thirds (2/3) vote at the regular Student Senate meeting immediately following the Student Senate meeting at which the proposal for amendments was submitted.
Amended March 19, 1998: Removal of section on elections to the Election Rules
Amended April 2, 1998: Changed fiscal policy to match proposed Student Senate Fiscal Policy
Amended April 30, 1998: Removal of restriction concerning the University Statement of Assurance
Amended November 11, 1998: Revised article concerning the Activities Board
Amended November 18, 1998: Revised and created articles concerning membership, structure, the Executive Committee, meetings, and student body directives
Amended April 8, 1999: Added Student Senate Budget to Fiscal Policy.
Amended April 22, 1999: Added Election of Internally Elected Officials to Structure.
Amended May 1, 2001: Changed the number of Alternates that a Senator can send.