Nullified referendum on the assembly table

AMS assembly will hold a closed session to discuss legal complications

Image supplied by: Graphic by Ashley Quan

At its biweekly meeting in the McLaughlin Room at 7 p.m. today, the AMS assembly will hold a closed session to discuss the fall referendum.

The referendum was reportedly nullified last week when the AMS assembly discovered that the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) — who oversees the referendum process — had not paid her student fees.

(The agenda can be found here)

AMS Fall Referendum

There will be a closed session limited to members of AMS assembly to discuss what President Kanivanan Chinniah called “several legal issues”.

According to student clubs that received notice from the AMS, the assembly voted to nullify the referendum after it was discovered that the CEO hadn’t paid her student fees. This means she was technically not a member of the AMS.

Chinniah said he was unable to confirm the nullification, citing the legal concerns.

Clubs affected by the nullification include Queen’s Backing Action on Climate Change (QBACC), Queen’s Best Buddies, the Ontario Public Interest Research Group (OPIRG) and the Sexual Health and Resource Centre (SHRC).

Discussion to be held on Election Policy Reform

The AMS had planned to end the assembly with a discussion on proposed changes to policy governing AMS elections. However, Marketing & Communications Officier Jessamine Luck told The Journal via email that the AMS executive are postponing the discussion. 

The proposed changes would extend the campaign period so it begins on the first day of winter classes. Current policy, meanwhile, states that the campaign period starts 11 days before the election (AMS elections are held at the end of January).

The proposed changes also include the removal of clauses stating that candidates can’t misrepresent or make untrue statements about the character or policies of other candidates. Limits on campaign posters — including the number of posters and dimensions permitted — have also been removed in the proposed amendments.

Annual General Meetings no longer an option for student fees

Vice President (Operations), Kyle Beaudry, has proposed a motion for AMS Assembly to vote on alterations to the Student Activity Fees policy.

Major proposals put forward include removing annual general meetings as an avenue for addressing student fees, creating more specifications on the criteria of external groups who apply to funding, and preventing groups who have been defeated during the referendum period from returning to referendum that year.

On Oct. 22, the AMS assembly voted to remove lines in the AMS constitution that made the AMS Annual General Meeting an avenue for gaining or increasing student activity fees. The proposed changes to AMS policy reflect that change to the constitution.

Ratification of Commissioner of Internal Affairs and Assistant Clubs Manager

Jon Wiseman and William Benwood will be up for ratification from AMS Assembly as Commissioner of Internal Affair and Assistant Clubs Manager, respectively.

Wiseman was hired as the Commissioner of Internal Affairs last Tuesday following the resignation of Miriam Bart, who previously held the position.

Campus Dentist to open in winter semester

Beaudry announced in his report that the Campus Dentist will be opening at the beginning of the winter semester in January after delays in construction.

The Campus Dentist will be situated in the performance lounge adjacent to Luce Hair Studio.

Tags

AMS Assembly, AMS Assembly Preview

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