The Student Council is the heart of the Associated Students of Madison. It is the center of the three pillars, the head of the octopus, and the central decision making body of the entire student government. Virtually all decisions made in the organization must be ratified through this collective. But just as a heart attack paralyzes the entire body, this defunct institution has rendered ASM powerless to react to outside actions and sustain long term goals.
There is a certain aspect of the Student Council that renders it more useless than any other component; the Student Council has no vision, no strictly delineated tasks other than being simply there to establish governing documents for ASM. Thus, let us examine the one location of strictly created duties—its constitutionally delegated tasks. According to the ASM Constitution, Article VII, Section 6:
Section 6: Powers and Duties
(a) Except as otherwise provided in this Constitution, the SC shall exercise all legislative powers of the ASM by majority vote.
(b) The SC shall appoint its own Chair, Vice-Chair and other officers as established by the Bylaws.
(c) The SC shall establish Bylaws and Rules for the ASM by two-thirds vote at two consecutive meetings. To amend Bylaws or Rules shall require a two-thirds vote at two consecutive meetings, subject to the veto power specified in this Constitution for SSFC and the Student Judiciary.
(d) The SC may refer any matter in its power to a vote of the members of the ASM by a resolution receiving a two-thirds vote at two consecutive meetings and filed with the Student Judiciary, with the exception of any matter that determines either the eligibility or funding level of a student organization or service.
(e) The SC shall keep and publish a journal of its own proceedings. The yeas and nays of any question shall be recorded in the journal on the request of two SC Representatives.
(f) The SC shall hold a town meeting at least once each semester to make known the activities of the SC and to listen to the views of ASM members. The SC Representatives representing an academic unit shall hold a town meeting at least once each semester for the ASM members of that unit.
(g) The SC shall have the sole power to convict on bill of impeachment any elected or appointed officer of the ASM. Cause for impeachment shall be limited to neglect of duties, official misconduct, or malfeasance in office. Impeachment shall be initiated upon the petition of one-third of the SC, excluding vacancies. A three-fourths vote of the entire SC, excluding vacancies, shall be required to convict or remove.
(h) Each Student Council member shall lobby the state legislature for affordable tuition at least once a year, participate in at least one activity in the fall and spring ASM recruitment drives and attend at least one United Council event, including, but not limited to, General Assemblies, retreats, trainings or conferences, per full academic semester. If a Student Council member does not comply with any part of this paragraph, they shall receive an unexcused absence for each infraction.
This is a peculiar creation, to say the least, remnants of a mindset that existed almost two decades ago. Subsection (a) dictates that the Student Council is the primary legislative body of the ASM. It is worth noting that the framers used the word legislate, which strictly defined means “to create or enact laws.” Surely the writers new that ASM would not be creating laws, for even in its truest from, ASM does not dictate or mandate anything to the student body. So what does it mean to legislate in the sense of the ASM Constitution? In my opinion, this means that the Student Council establishes the goals and methods of the entire institution, “legislating” what tasks will be delineated to where and how they are going to be enacted. This statement is fine, but it does nothing to indicate which tasks should be exercised.
Further examination of this section, specifically subsections (b), (c), (d), (e) and (g), yields that the Student Council shall pass bylaws, elect and remove officers, record its own votes, and put forth referendum votes to the student population. These, too, seem to do nothing more than establish normal workings of the ASM and state nothing of the true goals of the institution.
This leaves us with two unique subsections, (f) and (h), which both assign tasks to each individual member of the Student Council. Subsection (f) establishes that “The SC shall hold a town meeting at least once each semester to make known the activities of the SC and to listen to the views of ASM members.” This is particularly intriguing for its historical implications. In previous years, town halls and listening sessions have been held, but to no avail, as student turnout was low. I believe this stems from a lack of relevance to students, mostly because they don’t think ASM does anything for them, which is probably accurate in some years.
This brings us to the final delineation; subsection (h) has the most straightforward task that could possibly be assigned to members of the Student Council, reading that “Each Student Council member shall lobby the state legislature for affordable tuition at least once a year….” Finally, we see a truly assigned task, one that is indicative of an issue that is, and has always been, a high priority for student interests. The costs of tuition seem to continue to rise every year, bouncing off of different forms of rhetoric that always arrive at some percent increase. It would be nice to assume that Council members are realizing this initiative, but I have never seen any evidence that ASM is pursuing this route.
Having analyzed the constitutionally assigned tasks of the Student Council, it becomes easy to see why they have no vision or goals; they are certainly not assigned them. This works to two ends: at one extreme, we see that the Council is free to set their goals and can react to the student needs; at the other extreme, we see that the Council is free to set their goals and have absolutely no idea what they are supposed to do. This dichotomy, which likely works to the ladder rather than the former, leaves ASM hopelessly lost in establishing its goals.
There is a solution, of course, and it doesn’t take a Constitutional change. Having identified this as a serious problem, however, it will suffice for now. We will analyze the remedial steps in the very near future.
A Treatise on the Role of the Student Council
I would like to offer an in depth take on the explicit powers delineated for the Student Council in light of this post. The methodology I employ involves examining specific word choice utilized by the creators of the constitution in addition to exploring potential alternative word choice not selected. Thus, through this approach, we shall further our inquiry and ask questions which may no longer be asked of the ASM.
(a) Except as otherwise provided in this Constitution, the SC shall exercise all legislative powers of the ASM by majority vote.
Key components: Except | All | Majority
Beginning this first expressed power of the Student Council with the word “except” and further including the word “all” immediately tells us that the intent of this line is to delineate the primary decision-making body of the organization at least insofar as “legislation” is concerned. It is without down from this construction that the Student Council possesses the supreme decision-making power. However, “except” also indicates that Student Council is no the sole decision-renderer. This emphasis signals an important note which seems oft forgotten in today’s ASM.
I concur with what Mr. Madison has said about the definition of legislation. Clearly, with no institutional ability to “legislate” in the traditional sense, the Student Council’s legislative role is confined to directing the goals and general direction of the organization.
The other core component is “majority.” Perhaps we as a society take such an ideal for granted, but the emphasis on majority rule is an important one. Instead of using some higher threshold or singular rule, the decision was made to institute some sense of democratic rule by a majority of the people.
(b) The SC shall appoint its own Chair, Vice-Chair and other officers as established by the Bylaws.
Key components: Appointment Authority and Delineated Positions
This paragraph lays out the positions over which the Student Council has purview. Specifically, two positions, the ASM Chair and Vice Chair, are constitutionally proscribed. Further, any officer established under the legislative purview of the Student Council – “appoint its own…other officers” – via the bylaws shall also be appointed by the Student Council. This suggests that any committee under the Council may not appoint its own chair internally, and thus the Council must do so.
(c) The SC shall establish Bylaws and Rules for the ASM by two-thirds vote at two consecutive meetings. To amend Bylaws or Rules shall require a two-thirds vote at two consecutive meetings, subject to the veto power specified in this Constitution for SSFC and the Student Judiciary.
Key components: Two-thirds vote for Bylaws and Rules; Veto power of the SSFC and Student Judiciary
This paragraph outlines the procedures by which the Student Council may enact, revise and remove rules and procedures governing its functions. A higher than standard threshold of two-thirds (2/3) vote at two consecutive meetings is required for a Bylaws or Rules change. The two-consecutive meeting provision is included to slow down the rate at which institutional rules may be altered. This provision provides an essential check on the potential tyranny of the majority by ensuring two opportunities for minority opinions to be heard. This provision also provides an essential check on the potential tyranny of the minority by ensuring that a non-representative group cannot make a change because they find themselves as the majority in attendance at a single given meeting.
This section also specifies veto powers existent in two other branches of the student government. Simply put, the SSFC and the Student Judiciary possess veto power over the bylaws and rules which govern their respective domains. Furthermore, this veto power implicitly demonstrates a separation between the Student Council, the SSFC and the Student Judiciary, signaling a differentiated lateral relationship between these branches of the government. This is important, because it demonstrates that neither the SSFC nor the Student Judiciary is subservient to the will of the Student Council. It is also this veto power which ensures the balances are maintained.
(d) The SC may refer any matter in its power to a vote of the members of the ASM by a resolution receiving a two-thirds vote at two consecutive meetings and filed with the Student Judiciary, with the exception of any matter that determines either the eligibility or funding level of a student organization or service.
Key components: Referenda authority and Constitutional compliance
This paragraph simply authorizes the Student Council to put to a vote of the campus any issue which does not involve student organization funding. The latter part of this paragraph is important and intends to harbor the ASM from violating superior legal authority such as the federal constitution.
One critical component of this section, however, highlights a subtle, yet important philosophical tenet the founders intended. Requiring two-thirds vote at two consecutive meetings is incorporate to protect the student government from the masses. As political theorists have argued for centuries, rule by the masses is not conducive to effective government. Thus, it is necessary to ensure that the elected representatives clearly favor providing the masses an avenue to directly take a position on a given issue. Without this check, the government would remain at the whims of the student body each year and long-term viability could be jeopardized. Thus, this provision protects the electorate from itself while still providing for an outlet for participatory democracy.
(e) The SC shall keep and publish a journal of its own proceedings. The yeas and nays of any question shall be recorded in the journal on the request of two SC Representatives.
Key components: Publishing records and Recording votes
The central tenet of this paragraph concerns the transparency of government action. The Student Council must record and publish its decisions to ensure the public an ability to inspect its actions. This component is vital for participatory government. Further, upon the request of merely two representatives, the Student Council must record the votes of its members. This low threshold is designed with transparency in mind and prevents the possibility of concealing government action behind the shroud of anonymity.
(f) The SC shall hold a town meeting at least once each semester to make known the activities of the SC and to listen to the views of ASM members. The SC Representatives representing an academic unit shall hold a town meeting at least once each semester for the ASM members of that unit.
Key components: The ASM and individual members shall hold town halls
The focus of this paragraph is two-fold. First, the organization viewed collectively must hold a town hall meeting on a semester basis. This intimates a concept of the government working collectively to ensure dissemination of information. Second, the founders also identified the importance of constituent contact in a representative government and require individual Student Council representatives to hold town meetings on a semester basis. It is likely that the founders intended semesterly town halls as a compromise between ideal constituent outreach and logistical feasibility.
(g) The SC shall have the sole power to convict on bill of impeachment any elected or appointed officer of the ASM. Cause for impeachment shall be limited to neglect of duties, official misconduct, or malfeasance in office. Impeachment shall be initiated upon the petition of one-third of the SC, excluding vacancies. A three-fourths vote of the entire SC, excluding vacancies, shall be required to convict or remove.
Key components: Sole power of impeachment and impeachment threshold
This paragraph establishes the authority of impeachment and specifies the manner in which an impeachment may be carried out. It is important to note that this section utilizes only the word “impeachment” and does not incorporate other possibilities such as limiting rights or reducing compensation.
However, the emphasis on sole impeachment authority and the narrow grounds by which an officer may be impeached implies that impeachment is reserved for the gravest of offenses. Otherwise, a lower threshold would have been established. This notion is further confirmed when examining the one-third (1/3) requirement to bring forth an impeachment hearing and the highest threshold written in the constitution of three-fourths (3/4) to convict.
(h) Each Student Council member shall lobby the state legislature for affordable tuition at least once a year, participate in at least one activity in the fall and spring ASM recruitment drives and attend at least one United Council event, including, but not limited to, General Assemblies, retreats, trainings or conferences, per full academic semester. If a Student Council member does not comply with any part of this paragraph, they shall receive an unexcused absence for each infraction.
Key components: Legislative lobbying, recruitment, United Council participation and punishment for failure to comply
This final paragraph delineates specific duties each Council member must perform. These duties include lobbying the state legislature – one can only assume this to mean the Wisconsin State Legislature – for affordable tuition, participating in fall and spring recruitment drives and attending a United Council event per semester. The remedy for failure to comply is an unexcused absence, likely because this is nearly the only conceivable way to penalize a delinquent Council member. I also concur with the rest of Mr. Madison’s commentary on this subject.
I have thus laid out the basic framework of the constitutional language concerning Student Council. An intuitive understanding of its essential function as well as a more nuanced comprehension of the specific principles underlying its purpose is essential to fully recognize its role in ASM. As the core legislative body, among other bodies with the power to check, the Student Council serves as the focal point of the student government.
Publius
Of course, Mr. Jay’s analysis of this part of the Constitution is correct, but it only works to further my point. It is one thing to spew out the constitutionally delegated tasks for the Student Council, but in the end it simply reveals that there is a blank slate for establishing what it should do every year. If the Council did purely its defined duties in a given year, that would surely be a failure for ASM.
-JM