SGA passes bills editing accountability review process, dissolves grant review committee
By Alexandra Momot, SGA Reporter
The Towson University Student Government Association passed senate bills 1, 3, 5, 7 and 8 Tuesday after being tabled at last week’s General Assembly.
Appropriations Chair Steven White authored the bills and called them to question.
S.B. 1 redefines the power structure with which internal affairs are dealt with. Previously, if a member of the SGA is submitted for Professional Development Review, the attorney general and the person accusing them of malpractice would be involved in the case, according to the Accountability and Ethics Handbook.
Under S.B. 1, if an SGA member is accused of violating SGA rules, including the constitution, or neglecting their duties, an associate justice would also need to gather evidence in the case.
Clifton Crosby Jr., government operations chair, opposed S.B. 1 because it moves some power away from the attorney general to an associate justice assigned to the case.
“I just feel like we’re taking too much power away from our AG and in this instance, I don’t think that in our system as it stands now and in the future, the AG should have to plead or have to necessarily make a case, nor do I think that associate justice should have a final say in that decision,” Crosby Jr. said.
White responded that currently, it is the attorney general who has all the responsibility in the decision. He said they act as both the “jury” and the “executioner.”
“I wrote this legislation to level out that power dynamic,” White said.
The majority of senators agreed with White’s draft and his argument defending S.B. 1, and passed it.
S.B. 7 and 8 also passed after being tabled last week. These bills “dissolve the grant review committee and transfer its responsibilities to the appropriations committee,” The Towerlight reported.
