The Associated Students of Madison debated a change to bylaws governing the process of removing Student Services Finance Committee members from their positions at Wednesday's Student Council meeting.
SSFC Secretary Matthew Manes said interest in changing the bylaws came after Monday's SSFC meeting when members realized there existed no way to remove SSFC members without Student Council approval.
""The council meets every two weeks, which would be four of our meetings,"" Manes said. ""During that time, if a problem arose there would be really no way for us to address it in a timely matter.""
SSFC is the main funding committee for many student groups on campus.
Manes said he felt it necessary for the SSFC to have the power to remove a member because the committee needs to have the ability to hold itself accountable.
""The ability of the SSFC to self-regulate is critical because of the amount of money we handle and the time frame we operate on,"" he said.
According to Manes, if the new bylaws were approved, one-third of SSFC would need to petition the chair to begin the removal process, and then three-fourths of SSFC's voting members would need to vote in favor of removal after a hearing. The representative who was the subject of the removal hearing would be allowed to have legal counsel present.
Student Council members voted to refer the bylaw change back to the SSFC members for further review, as many felt language in the new bylaws was unclear.
ASM Vice Chair Tom Templeton said the new bylaws will be further discussed among SSFC members outside of the committee meeting.
""Sending it back is the right thing to do, and also re-looking at it and thinking of what improvements can be made,"" he said.
The Student Council also unanimously approved a grant of $13,752 for the pre-Halloween all-campus concert event.
