On Oct. 21, the Associated Students of the University of California, Riverside (ASUCR) began their weekly Senate Meeting at 7:06 p.m. and concluded at 7:36 p.m.
In new business the Senate considered two new appointees. One for the Secretary of the Court under the Judicial Branch and the other for the Head of Staff in the Executive Vice Presidents (EVP) office.
First was Meilani Lea Soliven for the Secretary of the Court, a position which resolves conflicts between and within the Legislative and Executive Branches alongside other responsibilities. Executive Director Asha Nettles gave remarks about Soliven, stating that she is a returning staff member to the judicial council and has been responsible for their postings, records and communications.
Morgan Gomez was then considered for the position of the Head of Staff for the office of the EVP, which assists in managing day-to-day operations and communications between the EVP, ASUCR and campus departments. EVP Chloe Wang stated that Gomez had the “strongest application, resume and interview out of all of the applicants.”
Both Soliven and Gomez were unanimously appointed by the senate.
In committee reports, the senate reviewed the Legislative Review Committee’s resolution titled SR-F26-001 or “Resolution to Approve Financial Institutions and Signatories 2026-27.” The resolution authorizes Nettles and Financial Operations Manager Amy Carrizosa to conduct ASUCR business with Bank of America accounts and allocates signatory power to them and Chief Financial and Administrative Officer for Student Affairs Luis Alvarez. The resolution passed unanimously.
In committee reports, the senate evaluated two Green Campus Action Plan (GCAP) grants for the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) and for the GCAP Farmers Market.
Grant 26-27: 001 or “Society of Women Engineers: SmartSpeed” reviewed a GCAP grant request from the SWE for $3,076.72 for four total units, each costing $769.18. It would fund the design and assembly of a system that utilizes computer vision and sensors to record speed and classification data about devices such as e-bikes and e-scooters on campus. This data is subsequently sent over to the University of California, Police Department (UCPD) to assist them in the enforcement of policy aimed at regulating e-scooter usage.
Multiple senators questioned the project’s capabilities and its connections with UCPD. However, Vice President of External Affairs Joseph Anastacio assured the senate that when he spoke with SWE, they said that the project would not be used to issue tickets or infractions and did not have any facial recognition capabilities. The grant was passed 12-0-3.
Grant 26-27: 002 or “GCAP Farmer’s Market” is a $4000 grant to pay for the campus fees associated with the GCAP Farmers Market which passed unanimously.
