Senate By-Law

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A BY-LAW OF THE DUKE STUDENT GOVERNMENT

Contents 1 THE SENATE BY-LAW 1.1 TITLE I. APPORTIONMENT, ELECTION, AND APPOINTMENT OF SENATORS 1.1.1 Section I. Terminology 1.1.2 Section II. Apportionment Formulae: 1.1.3 SECTION III. The Selection Committee 1.1.4 Section IV. Inauguration of Senators 1.2 TITLE II. RESPONSIBILITIES OF LEGISLATIVE OFFICERS AND COMMITTEES 1.2.1 Section I. Responsibilities of Senators 1.2.2 Section II. Responsibilities of the Executive Vice-President 1.2.3 Section III. Responsibilities of the Legislative Pro-Tempore 1.2.4 Section IV. Responsibilities of the Attorney General 1.2.5 Section V. Responsibilities of the Executive Secretary 1.2.6 Section VI. Responsibilities of the DSG Standing Committees 1.2.7 Section VII. Responsibilities of the Chairs of DSG Standing Committees 1.3 TITLE III. OFFICIAL ACTS OF LEGISLATION 1.3.1 Section I. Resolutions 1.3.2 Section II. Statutes 1.3.3 Section III. Budgetary Statutes 1.3.4 Section IV. By-Laws 1.3.5 Section V. Executive Orders 1.3.6 Section VI. Voting 1.4 TITLE V. HOUSE RULES 1.5 TITLE VI. MEETING TIMES 1.5.1 Section I. Standing Committee Meetings 1.5.2 Section II. Meetings of the Senate 1.6 TITLE VII. ADVISING 1.7 TITLE VIII. AWARDS 1.7.1 Section I. The Paul Edwin Harner Award 1.7.2 Section II. The Reginald Howard Award 1.7.3 Section III. The Graydon John Forrer Award 1.7.4 Section IV. The Dean Suzanne Wasiolek Award 1.7.5 Section V. The Nannerl O. Keohane Award 1.8 TITLE VIII. DISTRIBUTION OF THE LEGISLATIVE BY-LAW 1.9 TITLE IX. AMENDMENTS TO THE LEGISLATIVE BY-LAW

THE SENATE BY-LAW

A BY-LAW OF THE DUKE STUDENT GOVERNMENT To Repeal and Replace DSG BL-2007-110701

TITLE I. APPORTIONMENT, ELECTION, AND APPOINTMENT OF SENATORS

Section I. Terminology

For the purpose of appointing seats in the Senate, the undergraduate students of Duke University shall be divided into the following groups:

• A. Those students who are senators of the Freshman class as defined by the University Registrar’s criteria.
• B. Those students who are senators of the Sophomore class as defined by the University Registrar’s criteria.
• C. Those students who are senators of the Junior class as defined by the University Registrar’s criteria
• D. Those students who are senators of the Senior class as defined by the University Registrar’s criteria

Section II. Apportionment Formulae:

• A. Apportionment of seats in the Senate to the above groups shall be determined by the following formulae:

1. The Senate will be composed of forty (40) members, not including executive officers. Eight (8) of these senators will be selected from each class through election, together accounting for thirty two (32) members of the Senate. The remaining eight (8) senators will be At-Large members.
2. A minimum of two (2) members from each class should sit on each of the four standing committees chaired by a Vice President.
3. Senators will run for one of the four committees. A senator may not run for more than one committee at a time

Total number of Senators	Academic Affairs (10 senators)	Athletics and Campus Services (10 senators)	Community Interaction (10 senators)	Student Affairs (10 senators)
8 Fall Freshmen	2 senators	2 senators	2 senators	2 senators
8 Spring rising Juniors	2 senators	2 senators	2 senators	2 senators
8 Spring rising juniors	2 senators	2 senators	2 senators	2 senators
8 Spring rising sophomores	2 senators	2 senators	2 senators	2 senators
8 Fall At Large	Can vary from 0 to 8	Can vary from 0 to 8	Can vary from 0 to 8	Can vary from 0 to 8

• B. Elected Representation:

1. The selection of senators will be by popular election. Upperclassmen will be elected in the spring and freshman and at large senators will be chosen in the fall. Each student will be allowed two votes for candidates in their class per committee. These elections will be administered by DSG. In the event of a tie for the last available seat on the committee from a given class, the newly elected Senate will break the tie and select the new senator by a majority vote.

• C. At-Large Senators:

1. At-Large senators will be selected by an interview process conducted by the Selection Committee (as defined in Section III) and approved by the Senate.
2. Interview Process:

• a) The Interview Process will be conducted in the following manner: Each candidate for an At-Large seat shall complete a written application created by the Selection Committee and participate in an interview with the Selection Committee. The Executive Vice-President, upon advice from the Selection Committee, shall recommend to the Senate names for approval to fill these seats. Approval will be by a majority vote of the seated Senate.
• D. Vacancies

1. Vacancies in the Senate will be filled following the process for the selection and seating of At-Large senators.

• D. The Election by-law shall govern the conduct of Senate elections

SECTION III. The Selection Committee

At the beginning of each year, the Executive Vice-President will convene the DSG Selection Committee, for service throughout the year. The Selection Committee shall be responsible for recommending students to fill at-large senate seats. The Committee will be composed of the Executive Vice-President, who will chair the committee, the Vice-Presidents for Durham and Regional Affairs, Academic Affairs, Student Affairs, and Athletics and Campus Services. The Attorney General and Senate President Pro-Tempore may also be members of the Selection Committee at the discretion of the Executive Vice-President.

Section IV. Inauguration of Senators

• A. All DSG Senators elected in the Spring Election will be inaugurated by the sitting Chief Justice at the first meeting of the subsequent academic year. Senators chosen in the Fall Freshmen Election and the At-Large process will be sworn in at the first meeting following their selection. At-Large candidates will be immediately sworn in after approval by the Senate.
• B. The following statement shall be the DSG Senate Oath of Office and shall be used to swear in the Senators-elect: (/ indicates a pause): “I, (name of individual),/ swear that I will faithfully execute/ the office of DSG Senator,/ and that I will to the best of my ability/ preserve, protect, and defend/ the Constitution of the Duke Student Government.”

TITLE II. RESPONSIBILITIES OF LEGISLATIVE OFFICERS AND COMMITTEES

Section I. Responsibilities of Senators

• A. Senators are responsible for having a proactive role in pursuing student interests and lobbying the Administration through their active involvement in the Senate, DSG Standing Committees, and University Committees.
• B. Bad Standing:

Senators in Bad Standing are not permitted a voice in any official student government matter. They cannot be recognized. They cannot vote. Senators may be placed in Bad Standing by a majority vote of the Cabinet upon recommendation of the Executive Vice-President. They may be removed from Bad Standing at the discretion of the Executive Vice-President or by a majority vote of the Executive Officers.

• C. Attendance:

Senators are responsible for attending all meetings of the Senate, their respective Standing Committees, other DSG Committees or sub-groups to which they belong, and any assigned University Committee.

1. Senate Meetings

• • a) All Senate meetings must be attended. Excuses are only allowed in cases of emergency or if academic business conflicts with scheduled meeting times. Senators should make every effort to schedule classes and other extracurricular meetings around Senate meetings. Excessive excuse requests will be noted by the President Pro-Tempore and reported to the Executive Vice-President for review.
  • b) All excuses for meetings should be presented in writing to the Executive Vice-President and President Pro-Tempore at least 24 hours before the beginning of the meeting. Late excuses will be accepted at the discretion of the Executive Vice-President.
  • c) A representative must be in attendance for at least three-quarters (3/4) of a Senate meeting to be counted as present.
  • d) Two unexcused absences result in placement in bad standing.
  • e) Three unexcused absences can result in removal from Senate.

1. Senate Standing Committee Meetings

• • a) At Senate Standing Committee meetings each Vice-President shall determine a policy for excused absences. This policy will be outlined in each committee the first meeting of the year.
  • b) Punishments for missed meetings follow the same policy as outlined in C1, Section 1, Title II of this By-Law.
• D. Legislative Responsibility:

# General Legislative Requirements:

• • a) A Code of Dress will be strictly enforced. Such a code will be established and communicated by the Executive Vice-President at the beginning of the Legislative Session, including consequences for violations of the dress code.
  • b) No member may hold the floor for speaking unless recognized by the Chair or yielded time from another member who has been recognized by the Chair. The Chair will rule any comment as out of order if he deems it to be disruptive, hostile, inappropriate, or unrelated to discussion at that time. Individuals ruled out of order immediately forfeit control of the floor.

Section II. Responsibilities of the Executive Vice-President

The Executive Vice-President, in accordance with and in addition to the DSG Constitution, shall:

• A. Preside over the Senate.
• B. Consult with the DSG President on all matters, including legislative proceedings.
• C. Be a member of the President’s cabinet and follow all rules and regulations as set forth in the Executive By-Law.
• D. Vote on legislation to break a tie. If the Executive Vice-President casts the tie-breaking vote, he must announce at that time to the Senate that he has done so.
• E. Direct legislation to the appropriate committee for review.
• F. Be responsible for ensuring adequate attendance at meetings of the Senate.
• G. Be the chief officer with regard to the preparation of all materials for legislative meetings.
• H. Be responsible for conveying legislative action to the President’s cabinet.
• I. Set the agenda for the legislative meetings.
• J. Maintain a minimum of two established office hours per week.
• K. May nominate as many legislative assistants as he deems necessary for proper execution of his duties and the effective operation of the Senate, subject to the approval of the Senate.
• L. Have the power to create ad-hoc legislative committees and task forces, their chairs and members, subject to the approval of the full Senate.
• M. Serve as an ex-officio member of all Standing Committees, ad-hoc committees, task forces, and other sub-groups of the Senate, unless there exists a conflict of interest.
• N. Have the power to step down from the Chair and assume the role of a representative in order to debate an issue. In this situation, the Executive Vice-President acts as a voting member and the President Pro-Tempore serves as Chair, voting only in case of a tie. The Executive Vice-President resumes the position of Chair upon completion of debate on the issue.
• O. Exercise any other powers accorded him/her by the DSG Constitution or by other By- Laws.

Section III. Responsibilities of the Legislative Pro-Tempore

The President Pro-Tempore, in accordance with and in addition to the DSG Constitution shall:

• A. Report to the Executive Vice-President.
• B. Be elected at the beginning of the legislative session by the Senate from among returning members.
• C. Be a voting member of the Senate.
• D. Preside over the Senate when the Executive Vice-President is not present or has to step down due to a conflict of interest or to participate in debate.
• E. Serve as Parliamentarian of the Senate and shall advise the Executive Vice-President on parliamentary procedure when asked to do so by the Executive Vice-President.
• F. Be responsible for any documents necessary for conducting legislative meetings.
• G. Call the roll.
• H. Enforce the responsibilities of the senators.
• I. Handle the official correspondence of the Senate.
• J. Keep a “Calendar of Legislation” open to public inspection containing the following information:
  • 1. The date of passage or defeat of all legislation
  • 2. The date of expiration of all legislation; and,
  • 3. The disposition of expired legislation (Renewed or Expired).
• K. Perform any other responsibilities as set forth in the Constitution or other By-Laws.
• L. Serve as an ex-officio member of all Standing Committees and ad-hoc committees unless there exists a conflict of interest.

Section IV. Responsibilities of the Attorney General

The Attorney General, in addition to duties as outlined in the DSG Constitution and other By-Laws, shall:

• • A. Offer opinions on the legality of motions or legislation when asked to do by the Executive Vice-President or Chair.
  • B. Assist the Executive Vice-President in maintaining order in the Senate.
  • C. Remove disruptive persons from the meeting upon request of the Executive Vice-President.
  • D. Administer all DSG internal and campus-wide elections.
  • E. Determine the vote of each senator on legislation The Attorney General shall then submit the voting records of each member for each Senate meeting to the Executive Vice President. These voting records shall be posted within 24 hours to an updated DSG homepage. Senators shall have the ability to post comments on their votes as links on the same webpage.

Section V. Responsibilities of the Executive Secretary

The Executive Secretary, in accordance with and in addition to the DSG Constitution and Executive By-Law shall:

• A. Record the minutes of all the meetings of the full Senate.
• B. Maintain the attendance records of the Senate.
• C. Compile the applicable Announcements, Special Presentations, and any other items, with the consultation of the Executive Vice President. This shall be e-mailed to all Senators.
• D. Assist the Executive Vice-President in the administration of the Senate.
• E. Perform such duties as may be assigned by the Cabinet.
• F. Perform any other responsibilities as set forth in the Constitution or By-Laws.

Section VI. Responsibilities of the DSG Standing Committees

• A. Each committee shall preview and review legislation which will be presented on the floor.
• B. Two committees may share jurisdiction on some issues.
• C. No Standing Committee may purport to represent all of DSG without approval of the full Senate.
• D. Each Standing Committee shall have the same areas of jurisdiction as the Committee Vice President as outlined in the Executive By-Law.

Section VII. Responsibilities of the Chairs of DSG Standing Committees

The DSG Vice-Presidents will chair the DSG Standing Committee that corresponds to their jurisdiction. The Chairs of the Standing Committees shall:

• 1. Convene and conduct regularly scheduled meetings of the DSG Standing Committees.
• 2. Set the agenda for committee meetings.
• 3. Be responsible for the effective administration of their respective committees.
• 4. Submit all committee approved legislation to the Executive Vice-President.
• 5. Insure adequate attendance at committee meetings, and submit attendance records to the President Pro-Tempore.
• 6. Maintain a minimum of at least two established office hours per week.
• 7. Maintain an official ledger of actions taken by the committee that have no corresponding legislation as prescribed by By-Law.
• 8. Exercise any other powers accorded in the Constitution and by other By-Laws.

TITLE III. OFFICIAL ACTS OF LEGISLATION

All acts of legislation will have a heading that reads: DSG-type of legislation-year-date-number of legislation on agenda. The type of legislation will be abbreviated with “R" for Resolution, “S” for Statutes, “BS” for Budgetary Statutes, and “BL” for By-Laws. Executive Orders shall take one of these abbreviations with “O” in parentheses.

All acts of legislation will go into effect within three (3) days, pending the signature of the DSG President: demonstrating the commitment of DSG to implement the legislation. A failure to sign a piece of legislation by the President will constitute a veto, which can be overridden by the Senate with a two-thirds vote.

All acts of legislation must be sponsored by at least one voting member of the Senate. At no time may anyone who is not a member of the Senate sponsor or co-sponsor legislation.

Section I. Resolutions

• A. Resolutions are official statements of opinion/recommendation of the Duke Student Government and will follow these guidelines:
  • 1. Each resolution will begin with a title on line one. This title will read, “A Resolution of the Duke Student Government...” followed by a brief description of the resolution.
  • 2. Immediately following the title, the author will give a policy statement labeled “Policy Statement' and will be written in paragraph form.
  • 3. The rationale will follow the Policy Statement. This section will be labeled “Rationale” and will also be written in paragraph form.
• B. These resolutions will come before the Senate after being reviewed by the Standing Committee of the author and must pass the Senate with a simple majority vote.
• C. All Resolutions should contain an expiration date clause. The maximum time period allowed for expiration shall be "perpetuity.” Upon expiration, the Senate may renew the force of a Resolution by amending the expiration date clause. If no clause is included in the Resolution, the expiration will be assumed to be perpetuity.

Section II. Statutes

• A. Statutes are directives from the Senate to another area/position of DSG to perform a specific action.
• B. Statutes must pass the Senate with a simple majority vote, unless otherwise specified in the Constitution or other By-Laws.
• C. Statutes become inactive upon completion of the directives of the statutes.
• D. All referendum questions, including those on fee increases and Constitutional amendments, shall be written as statutes directing the appropriate office to place a matter on the referendum ballot.

Section III. Budgetary Statutes

• A. Budgetary Statutes concern budget requests or other funding requests made by various organizations that are eligible for DSG funding. The Student Organizational Finance Committee (SOFC) will submit a budgetary statute to the Senate for each organization requesting funding, and the Senate can amend any part of the budget and pass it with a simple majority vote. The form for Budgetary Statutes and other rules concerning them will be prescribed in the SOFC By-Law.

Section IV. By-Laws

• A. By-Laws define the rules and procedures for the internal operation of the Duke Student Government and its jurisdiction. Two (2) readings are required before a By-Law may be voted upon, at least seven (7) days apart. A two-thirds majority is required for approval.

Section V. Executive Orders

• A. Executive Orders are interim or temporary decisions made by the Executive Committee during a recess of the Senate, usually under emergency circumstances, that can be repealed by the Senate upon its reconvening. Executive Orders will go into effect immediately following approval by a majority of the Executive Committee. Though not official acts of legislation, executive orders will be submitted in the form of Resolutions or By-Laws in a manner and form to be prescribed by the House Rules, so long as they are consistent with the By-Laws and Constitution [LEGISLATIVE INTENT: The form of the legislation must show that the Senate does not have the right to approve, only to repeal]. Any legislative decision may be decided by Executive Order during a recess of the Senate, except those requiring the allocation of funds.

Section VI. Voting

• A. The vote required for passage for all pieces of legislation, excluding By-Laws and Constitutional Amendments, shall be a majority. A majority is defined as 50% plus one of the voting members of the Senate, excluding abstentions. Procedures for other types of votes, including votes required on motions, will be defined in the House Rules.
• B. Senators may not vote by proxy.

TITLE V. HOUSE RULES

The procedure in the Senate shall be governed by such House Rules as the Senate may adopt annually, if said rules are consistent with the Constitution and By-laws.

• A. At the conclusion of the election for the Executive Vice-President, the Rules Committee shall immediately be convened by the current Executive Vice-President in order to review the House Rules.
• B. This Committee shall be chaired by the current Executive Vice-President and shall be comprised of the Executive Vice-President-Elect, the President Pro-Tempore, and additional interested senators or others as chosen by the current Executive Vice-President.
• C. The Rules Committee will review and recommend amendments to the current House Rules and will submit these recommendations to the Senate two (2) meetings prior to the end of the current Legislative Session for approval for the following Session.
• D. If the proposed amendments fail to pass the Senate, the unamended House Rules shall be used at the beginning of the following Session until new House Rules are approved by the Senate.
• E. The Executive Vice-President and others may propose amendments to the House Rules throughout the Session.
• F. All members of the Senate may propose amendments to the House Rules.
• G. All amendments to the House Rules must be ratified by a simple majority vote of the Senate.
• H. The House Rules shall be made public.

TITLE VI. MEETING TIMES

Section I. Standing Committee Meetings

Standing Committees shall meet at least once per week.

Section II. Meetings of the Senate

• A. A session of the Senate will run from the first Legislative meeting of the academic year to the last day of classes for that year. The session may be extended if deemed necessary by the President in consultation with the Executive Vice-President, or by a written request from eight senators. However, a session may not be extended past graduation of the year in question.
• B. Meetings of the Senate must be held at least two (2) times each month. Additional meetings may be called at the discretion of the President, Executive Vice-President, or by a written request of eight senators.

TITLE VII. ADVISING

• I. The Advisor for the Duke Student Government will be the Director of the Office of Students and Facilities (OSAF).
  • a. This shall not prevent the DSG from collaborating with other administrators, professors, staff or personnel of the university or community.
  • b. The DSG may take on another official advisor by a 2/3 majority vote of the DSG Senate
  • c. An additional advisor will not replace any existing advisor
  • d. An advisor can be removed with a 2/3 majority of the Senate
• II. The DSG Advisor has the following duties, powers, rights and obligations
  • a. To meet with members of the DSG for consultation on issues
  • b. If requested, to assist the Executive Committee in training of new senators
  • c. If requested, to give a brief overview of DSG policies and practices to new executive members
  • d. The DSG Advisor, or a person representing him or her should attend the General Body Meetings of the DSG Senate
    • i. The advisor is allowed 2 absences per semester
    • ii. After a third absence, the senate should review the attendance of the advisor
  • e. To be recognized during a DSG General Body Meeting
  • f. Does not have the responsibility to enforce bylaws or the constitution
  • g. To be present in the tabulation of votes for executive and general elections
    • i. The Advisor may report illicit behavior surrounding the elections to the DSG Senate
  • h. To act as the DSG Historian, providing resources as to the past missions and actions of the organization
  • i. To help develop consistency from year-to year
  • j. To sign off on contracts on behalf of the DSG with consultation and approval of the DSG

TITLE VIII. AWARDS

The following awards will be chosen by the Senate at the last meeting of the Session by secret ballot. A plurality of affirmative votes will be necessary to declare the recipient of any award.

Section I. The Paul Edwin Harner Award

• A. The Paul Edwin Harner Award (named for the ASDU 1985 Speaker of the Senate), is awarded to a member of the Duke Student Government who has shown a strong, commitment to the well-being of Duke University by providing strong, consistent leadership and dedication to the Duke Student Government throughout their undergraduate years and has been exemplary in their service to the Duke Student Government.
• B. Recipients are not required to have been members of the Duke Student Government during their entire undergraduate career, although senators are permitted to take such experience into consideration.

Section II. The Reginald Howard Award

• A. The Reginald Howard Award (named for the 1976 President of the Associated Students of Duke University, who was killed in a tragic car accident), is awarded to a member of the Cabinet who best exemplifies the traits of excellent leadership, compassion, and dedication that characterized the Reginald Howard presidency.

Section III. The Graydon John Forrer Award

• A. The Graydon John Forrer Award (named for a 1981 ASDU Senator), is awarded to the Duke Student Government Senator who has demonstrated the highest level of integrity during the legislative session.

Section IV. The Dean Suzanne Wasiolek Award

• A. The Dean Suzanne Wasiolek Award, named for the Assistant Vice-President for Student Affairs and former Dean of Student Development, is awarded to a member of the Duke University administration who has seriously and effectively considered the interests and concerns of undergraduates in the course of carrying out their duties and/or formulating policy in the best interest of the University community as a whole throughout their tenure at Duke. All administrators will be automatically nominated.

Section V. The Nannerl O. Keohane Award

• A. The Nannerl O. Keohane Award, named for the former President of Duke University, is awarded to the member of the Duke University administration, faculty, or staff whose work with the Duke Student Government demonstrates service and commitment to undergraduate students which characterized the Nan Keohane presidency.

TITLE VIII. DISTRIBUTION OF THE LEGISLATIVE BY-LAW

The Executive Vice-President shall distribute copies of this By-Law to each representative at the beginning of the Legislative Session, and to each new senator who is seated during the course of a Session.

TITLE IX. AMENDMENTS TO THE LEGISLATIVE BY-LAW

In case of future amendments to this By-Law, this By-Law shall be retyped to include the amendments and shall replace the previous full copy of the By-Law in the DSG records. A clause shall be added at the end of the newly retyped By-Law giving the dates of all amendments. Only the most recent amendment shall be retained in the DSG records, and previous ones may be discarded as their text will be included in the full By-Law.

Respectfully submitted,

Gregory Morrison Senate President Pro Tempore

Previous Amendments to this bylaw:

• 1. February 25, 2001
• 2. August 26, 2002 (Executive Order)
• 3. September 25, 2002
• 4. March 17, 2003
• 5. August 2006
• 6. November 7, 2007