The Missouri Students Association Senate accomplished much during the 2018-2019 academic year, passing important pieces of legislation that deeply affected MU’s campus. The MSA Senate’s end of session report provides a retrospective account of the important acts, MSA constitutional amendments and resolutions the Senate passed that year.
According to the Senate’s end of session report, acts are legislative pieces that change the MSA Bylaws and Senate rules. Constitutional amendments are acts that the student body can vote on whether or not it is implemented into the MSA constitution. Resolutions are the MSA’s official stance on certain issues.
He’s a look back at noteworthy legislation that was passed.
###Resolutions###
In response to the Missouri Senate Bill 279 and House Bill 573, which would have restructured the Title IX process across the state, the Senate passed Resolution 58-23. The resolution showed MSA’s support behind the MU Administration’s protection of the current Title IX process. From previous [Maneater reporting](https://twitter.com/itsonusmu?lang=en), It’s On Us Mizzou said the legislation would retraumatize survivors and discourage them from seeking support and protection.
In Resolution 58-27, the MSA encouraged MU to explore the possibility of implementing virtual ID’s on campus, which would give students access to their MU ID’s through their mobile phones. MSA Chair Solomon Davis made this topic a strong talking point during his unsuccessful campaign for MSA president in the 2019 spring semester, according to previous [Maneater reporting](https://www.themaneater.com/stories/news/solomon-davis-reacts-to-msa-presidential-election-results).
The Senate also passed Resolution 58-30 which advocated for MU to look into opportunities to provide students free emergency contraceptives on campus. The resolution was authored by Audrey Aton, president of the Planned Parenthood Advocates of Mizzou. More than 1,200 students signed a petition to support the resolution, which PPAM hoped would allow students access to two Plan B pills per student.
###Acts###
To show the MSA’s commitment to ensuring that inclusivity is the responsibility of everyone, Act 58-03 changed the name of Chief Diversity and Inclusivity Officer to Director of Inclusivity.
The Senate struggled to maintain a high number of members last academic year, according to [Maneater reporting](https://www.themaneater.com/stories/news/msa-senate-informational-meeting-informs-prospective-members-about-senate-benefits). Act 58-09 aims to increase membership by simplifying the arrangement of seats available, which would generally increase the number of opportunities students would have to join.
In response to previous issues with organizing MSA elections, the Senate passed Act 58-13, which created an official and standardized election code for all future MSA elections. Previously, new rules were written for every upcoming election and not all elections adhered to the same rules.
Overall, the Senate saw the completion of 33 projects, with 22 additional projects being created. MSA Senate Speaker Jacob Addington, in a statement inside the end of session report, showed his passion for the organization.
“We are excited for next year, and we are looking forward to making the student experience even better for all of Mizzou,” he wrote.
For the full report, click the download link [here](https://missouri.campuslabs.com/engage/organization/msa-senate/documents/view/1270779)
_Edited by Zoia Morrow | zmorrow@themaneater.com_
