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ASUCD senate bans purchasing of single-use plastics, holds unscheduled closed session at Jan. 16 meeting

The table discussed the marketing for an upcoming destresser event, and Senator Cohen asserted her openness to collaboration

 

By MEGAN PUSL, KHADEEJAH KHAN and VINCE BASADA — campus@theaggie.org

 

ASUCD Internal Vice President Aaminah Mohammad called the Jan. 16 senate meeting to order at 6:14 p.m. before reading the UC Davis Land Acknowledgement. 

First, the table heard a presentation from the Innovation and Research Lab (IRL), ASUCD’s in-house software and research group. 

IRL researchers Jeremy Elvander, a third-year data science major, Isabella Gonzales, a fourth-year statistics major, and Rani Saro, fourth-year computer science major, introduced a new internal project request form to the table that allows senators to personally request software and research projects. 

Elvander, who also serves as the IRL’s associate director, expressed his goals for researchers.

 “[To] work closer with the legislative branch of the senate, creating projects that help you guys with your tasks and allow us to make better connections with other units and commissions within ASUCD,” Elvander said.

Next, the table went over unit and committee adoptions, where each senator requested, or was assigned, to work with individual ASUCD units and committees. 

After elected officer and ex-officio reports, and with no public comments, the senate took a short break before returning to discuss legislation. The senate quickly passed the consent calendar, a group of noncontroversial bills that are not debated over. This included Senate Bill (SB)#33, which clarifies the duties of the executive branch as laid out in SB#4. 

SB#31, a bill that would allocate $320 to host an event titled “ASUCD Supporting Students in Post-Inauguration Stress,” was removed at the request of Senator Mia Cohen.

Senator Amrita Julka, who authored the bill, described the event as a way to address student “stress, anxiety and worries” following the inauguration of President Donald Trump. Cohen objected to the use of the phrase “post-inauguration stress,” arguing that “certain communities on campus may feel unwelcome on campus” if ASUCD took a political stance on the new administration.

Senator Umar Shaikh responded to Cohen’s objection, citing the experiences and fears students from historically marginalized communities underwent during the first Trump presidency and his belief that ASUCD should take a stance on such issues. 

“I think the notion that [ASUCD isn’t] a political institution is kind of ridiculous,” Shaikh said. “It is nonsensical to say that we shouldn’t be political when our identities are politicized all the time.”

Jasthi agreed and supported the language used in the bill.

“The language used isn’t just because it is a political thing in itself but because it affects people with that political lens attached to it,” Jasthi said.

Cohen responded to clarify her stance, stating that instead of opposing the event itself, she believed a change of wording to be less “divisive” to be the best course of action. Additionally, Cohen said there is no intent to change the event’s planning but only its advertisement. 

Julka said she was open to making changes to the event’s name, adding that when she advertises the event on social media, the event would be promoted solely as a supportive environment for all students. However, she also said that she would not change the event’s purpose and reaffirmed the validity of post-inauguration stress.

“My goal is to provide students with space,” Julka said. “Students are worrying right now.”

SB#31 passed with a vote of 10-1-3, yes-no-abstain/absent, with Cohen providing the “no” vote. 

Next, the senate discussed SB#32, a bill that would establish a ban on single-use plastic products, excluding single-use plastic packaging. The table discussed concerns surrounding the enforcement of the bill within the Coffee House and regarding current supplier comments. 

After Environmental Policy and Planning Commission (EPPC) Chairperson Annie Kanjamala addressed her concerns and informed them that enforcement of the bill would be up to ASUCD’s career staffers, the bill passed unanimously.

The senate then discussed Senate Resolution (SR)#4, a resolution that called on UC Davis to abide by contractual bidding processes in alignment with California Contract Code and University of California policy. The resolution specifically cited alleged contract violations in the university’s handling of a recently renewed $10 million pouring rights contract (PRC) with PepsiCo. 

The EPPC was under the impression that the UC Davis administration responsible for procurement failed to submit a Request for Proposal (RFP), a document allowing corporations to bid for the PRC. President Gaius Illepeju informed the table that UC Davis did submit an RFP, which would make the resolution factually incorrect, and apologized for not clarifying the situation with EPPC sooner. Given this new information, Kanjamala said she was open to tabling the resolution and SR#4 was withdrawn. 

After approving past meeting minutes, the table moved into open forum. The table discussed the possibility of having most units’ quarterly reports be delivered as written statements and having only a few pre-selected units appear before the table in person, in the interest of time. Others on the table, including Ilupeju, expressed concerns that prioritizing a few units for increased attention would be an unfair practice.

The table continued discussion on possible ways to make meetings more efficient, though they did not come to a final decision before moving to other comments. Afterwards, Cohen made a statement about working alongside the other senators, placing an emphasis on fostering collaboration. 

“It’s been an absolute privilege to get to know and work alongside each of you,” Cohen said. “I’d like to take a moment to remind everyone of SR#1, which mentions, and I quote, ‘Bringing community leaders together to find common ground is important for promoting understanding, reducing conflict and ensuring that diverse perspectives are respected within the campus community.’ That being said, dialogue, open mindedness and mutual respect are essential in a collaborative setting like this.”

Cohen continued to express her thoughts on the matter of openness and collaboration.
“I deeply appreciate everyone who’s engaged with me this far,” Cohen said. “I’m always approachable for questions or collaboration regardless of any preconceived notions.”

Following other brief comments during open forum, the senate entered into an unscheduled closed session at 8:24 p.m. without public notice.

An ASUCD official close to the matter, speaking on the condition of anonymity, confirmed that the closed session was a “surprise” to several members of the senate table and was planned ahead of time by Ilupeju.

The closed session lasted until the meeting’s adjournment at 9:05 p.m.

 

Written by: Megan Pusl, Khadeejah Khan and Vince Basada campus@theaggie.org

 

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