Student Council members voted to table a bill that would create a public record of Council members' votes in a majority vote at last night's meeting.
While all members agree on the fundamental logic of the bill, some members voiced concerns regarding how constituents could construe a member's vote since the bill did not include a venue for Council members to explain their reasoning behind their decisions.
Some members said Council needs a week to make changes to the bill to include a system for reporting their rationale along with their vote.
"There are some more kinks that need to be worked out," Director of University Relations Peter Farrell said. "We have to figure out the best way for students to see opinions. We want to make it as transparent as possible."
Engineering Rep. Kevin Sproule said he agreed the amendment must contain language that would allow Council members to justify their rationale to students.
"I understand the need to be accountable, but I would like to see something where we can explain" our decisions, Sproule said.
The proposed amended bylaw purports to make Council voting processes more transparent, said Gavin Reddick, a representative from the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, who co-sponsored the bill. The amendment to the bylaw would give the recording secretary the responsibility to document each council member's voting record and post the results on the Council's Web site.
Reddick said the concept of student self-governance and democracy necessitates a public account of voting records, and said he has no qualms with the public having knowledge of his voting records.
"I do not think it is an unreasonable request," Reddick said. "It is the linchpin of good government. It would just let people know what we do, which is what we are all about. We should not be afraid of what we do."
Executive Vice President Whitney Garrison also co-sponsored the bill.
"One of my goals this year was to promote transparency and accountability on Council," Garrison said. "Recording how votes are taken is an important aspect of accountability."
Currently, votes are counted anonymously unless one-fifth of the representative body votes to have Council members go on record, which rarely happens, Garrison said.
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