One of the main topics of discussion at this week’s LUCC meeting was a proposed change to legislation regarding public smoking areas in the dorms. These proposed changes called for a vote at the beginning of the school year over whether or not to have smoking lounges or some other form of public smoking area in the dorms not designated smoke-free.
This legislation will not change the policies already in place for dorms designated as non-smoking residence halls.
Before this legislation was passed, only ten percent of the residence hall had to vote for a public smoking area in order for one to be created. Now, one third of the members of the residence hall will have to approve in order for one to be designated.
If the yearly vote shows that one third or more of the students within that hall desire a public smoking area, that dormitory’s hall council will determine exactly which space in the building will be the designated public smoking area.
If at any other point in the school year the residence hall feels that opinions have changed, that hall can call for a revote to ascertain if one third of the hall now feels the need for a public smoking area.
LUCC appointed a new chairman to head up the Polling, Election, and Leadership Committee. Terrence O’Brien, who was elected by the Committee on Committees, will try to institute online voting by next term.
According to O’Brien, the new online voting system will allow for less margin of error in the voting process. The new online voting will also allow for a greater percent of the student body to partake in the voting process.
The Polling, Election, and Leadership Committee will be modifying a program currently used by the Campus Services office to create the online voting system.
There was also mention of a forthcoming proposal to change both the way in which LUCC members are paid and the publication of the current salaries of the members of LUCC.
The upcoming proposal will call for the salaries of the LUCC members to be taken out of work study funds instead of the student activity fee. At the same time, the proposal will also call for the salaries of the LUCC members to be published in the student handbook.