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- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 1
- SGA BYLAWS
- September 2021
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 2
- I. DUTIES OF THE SENATE
- 1. Scope
- i. This article shall apply to all members of the Senate and corresponding advisors.
- ii. This section is established in concord with Article II and Article VI of the Constitution.
- iii. Should any part of this article be found unconstitutional, such part shall be considered
- severable and the rest of the article shall remain in effect.
- 2. Membership Responsibilities & Roles
- i. Per the Constitution, there exists three (3) distinct types of SGA members at large:
- 1. Executive Board
- a. Article III of the Constitution defines the responsibilities and roles of the four (4)
- Executive Board members.
- b. The Executive Secretary shall be tasked with recording how frequently each of
- the non-senate bodies within SGA (such as the PRDC) issue a report to the
- Senate during general body meetings. The Executive Secretary shall note if any
- of these bodies are ever in violation of the GBM reporting requirements outlined
- in the group’s bylaws, and, if so, should take the appropriate action detailed
- therein.
- c. In addition, the Executive Board shall also ensure the smooth integration of new
- members – especially freshmen – into SGA.
- i. The Executive Board shall coordinate the production of transition
- documents compiled by the Executive Branch, Standing Legislative
- Committees, and Class Councils. These documents shall be finished at
- the end of every one-year term, presented to the Senate, and provided to
- the next SGA.
- ii. The Executive Board shall also organize at least one mandatory SGA
- retreat per one-year term to clarify its goals and promote group
- development.
- d. The Executive Board shall ensure regular communication with their counterparts
- in the Graduate Student Organization (GRO) by meeting with the co-chairs of the
- GRO at the beginning of each semester. The Executive Board shall at this time
- ensure that committee chairs establish contact with relevant GRO executive
- board chairs.
- 2. Class Councils
- a. Per the Constitution, there shall exist four (4) Class Councils that shall represent
- each of the four (4) undergraduate classes.
- b. Class Councils, which are comprised of one (1) Class President and six (6) Class
- Senators, shall strive to:
- i. Understand the sentiments of their class via outreach methods (e.g.
- surveys).
- ii. Serve as primary SGA liaisons to their class by communicating what the
- SGA is doing.
- iii. Utilize proper programming to facilitate class-specific unity events.
- c. Class Councils shall meet weekly.
- d. At the first Class Council meeting, one member shall be designated to take
- minutes for all Class Council meetings.
- 3. Class Presidents
- a. Per the Constitution, four (4) Class Presidents shall be elected for every one-year
- term to serve as primary class representatives on the Senate.
- b. Class Presidents shall exercise general superintendence over all class affairs.
- c. Presidents shall serve on the Executive Board’s Class Council Task Force that
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 3
- seeks to enhance cross-council collaboration in bringing matters of class-related
- significance to the attention of the Senate.
- i. Class Council Task Force meetings shall be called by the Executive
- President once a month and throughout each one-year term.
- d. Class Presidents shall ensure proper and regular communication between their
- respective councils and classes.
- e. Class Presidents shall set every Class Council meeting agenda and lead all Class
- Council meetings.
- f. Class Presidents shall also be considered as Senators and perform all regular
- Senatorial duties.
- 4. Senators
- a. Per the Constitution, twenty-eight (28) Senators shall be elected for every
- one-year term.
- b. Senators participate within SGA as members of the Senate, Standing Legislative
- Committees, and Class Councils.
- c. Senators shall be proactive in pursuing student interests and concerns, in addition
- to actively lobbying relevant administrators.
- d. Senators shall prioritize their commitments to SGA and strive to attend all
- SGA-related meetings.
- e. Senators may be considered in bad standing if they do not fulfill the
- aforementioned guidelines and subsequently may be subject to an impeachment
- hearing under Article IX of the Constitution.
- f. A representative from the SGA will be selected by the Senate to attend the GRO
- meetings and thereby act as a point of contact between the GRO and the SGA. In
- turn, the GRO will provide an equivalent representative from their group to
- attend the SGA meetings.
- g. Post-Election Meet and Greet
- i. As part of the official inauguration process of SGA, newly-elected SGA
- representatives must attend a mandatory meet and greet session
- designed to interface with the undergraduate student body within 7 days
- after election decisions are released.
- ii. The meet and greet session must be at least one hour long.
- iii. The meet and greet session must have all newly elected representatives
- present.
- iv. The meet and greet session must be open to all JHU undergraduates and
- be held in a space that is easily accessible to all JHU undergraduate
- students.
- v. Executive Vice President will be tasked with organizing the meet and
- greets.
- vi. Meet and greet session will be widely publicized by SGA.
- h. SGA Tabling Events
- i. SGA will host one tabling event every month of the school year, with
- provisional exceptions to December, January, and May, as these months
- tend to have less school days compared to others. Explicitly, months that
- must have a tabling event include September, October, November,
- February, March, and April.
- ii. Tabling events must be at least one hour long.
- iii. Tabling events must be staffed by a minimum of six SGA
- representatives, each from the four class councils, as well as two other
- SGA members. A member of the Executive Board may be allowed to
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- substitute one of the six SGA representatives.
- iv. SGA representatives must take turns tabling to ensure that as many
- different SGA representatives as possible are participating in these
- events.
- v. All senators and the Executive Board must attend at least one tabling
- event throughout the year.
- vi. Tabling events must open to all JHU undergraduate students and be held
- in a space that is easily accessible to all JHU undergraduate students and
- preferably, in a highly frequented area. Possible tabling areas include:
- 1. Breezeway
- 2. Brody Learning Commons and Terrace
- 3. Milton S. Eisenhower Library
- 4. Charles Commons
- 5. In front of Fresh Food Café
- 6. Levering Café and Courtyard
- 7. Mattin Center
- vii. Tabling events must be well-publicized by all the class councils before,
- during, and after the events to draw in as much attendance, and future
- attendance, as possible.
- viii. At the end of every tabling event, there must be a report submitted about
- the event’s feedback.
- ix. There must be a sign-up sheet assigning placements at the beginning of
- the year, and any rooms or spaces shall be reserved as necessary, for
- every month of the year
- x. Once the freshmen are elected, they will be held accountable for these
- above guidelines.
- ii. Advisors
- 1. There shall exist SGA advisors who shall be resources when called upon by the SGA.
- a. The SGA, in conjunction with the Office of the Dean of Student Life shall
- appoint one (1) SGA Advisor for the SGA at large and four (4) Class Council
- Advisors.
- iii. Inclusivity and Resource Awareness Trainings and Presentations
- 1. To foster a positive and health community within the SGA and across campus, the SGA
- shall participate in the following trainings during their term in office:
- a. Diversity and inclusion training from the Office of Multicultural Affairs and the
- Office of Gender Equity
- b. SafeZone training from the Office of LGBTQ Life
- c. Bystander Intervention Training from the Title IX Office
- d. Mental health resource training from the Counseling Center
- e. Student organizations or financial processes training from the Office of Student
- Leadership and Involvement (SLI) or the Student Activities Commission.
- 2. Special Conditions
- a. If time or scheduling conflicts do not permit these trainings to be completed
- during the Fall Retreat, an SGA member can spread them out over the course of
- their first semester in session.
- b. If an SGA member received a version of one of these trainings within the last
- three years, and the training is scheduled for the Fall Retreat, they will be
- permitted to exempt out of the already completed training and perform an
- alternative activity for others who have exempted out.
- i. To opt out, an SGA member must provide an email, certificate, or other
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- formal documentation that they completed a training.
- II. SENATE PROCEDURAL RULES
- 1. Scope
- i. The Senate Procedural Rules shall supersede all legislation and Robert’s Rules of Order, but shall
- not supersede other Bylaws or the Constitution.
- 2. Membership Privileges
- i. Only Members of the Senate, including Executive Board officers in an ex-officio capacity shall
- have speaking privileges in the Senate during the consideration of motions.
- 3. Attendance
- i. Required
- 1. Attendance at Senate general body meetings, committee meetings, and Class Council
- meetings is mandatory for all Senators. The Executive Vice President shall be permitted to
- grant a total of 12 excused absences per senator per year, with an additional 4 excused
- absences for every additional committee beyond 2 committees that the senator serves on.
- Senators who have 2 unexcused absences shall be subject to an impeachment vote per the
- Constitution. Senators who have 4 unexcused absences shall be thanked for their service
- and summarily dismissed from the SGA per the Constitution.
- ii. Taking Attendance
- 1. A roll call shall be taken at the beginning of each Senate meeting, and recorded in the
- minutes. The Executive Secretary shall be responsible for keeping track of whether
- enough Senators are present when voting on legislation.
- 2. Members must stay for the entire meeting unless previously excused or in cases of
- emergency.
- iii. Recording Attendance
- 1. All SGA members’ attendance records shall be noted on the SGA’s website and shall be
- sent to the student body in a press release every semester.
- iv. Documenting and Verifying Absences
- 1. The Executive Secretary shall document all absences – Senate, committee, and council –
- on a spreadsheet publicly available on the SGA website. The spreadsheet shall be updated
- with absences no later than one week from the date of a meeting. If no minutes for a
- meeting are provided to the Secretary after one week, all persons required to attend the
- meeting shall be counted as absent until minutes are provided.
- a. The Chair of the Internal Affairs Committee shall maintain parallel attendance
- records to ensure that attendance records can be double-verified.
- v. One-Time Medical Leave and One-Time Family Emergency Leave
- 1. Once a school year, if an SGA member is temporarily unable to attend meetings for any
- reason verified by an accredited medical provider, they shall be permitted to take a
- medical leave of no more than two academic weeks.
- 2. Once a school year, if an SGA member is temporarily unable to attend meetings for any
- reason related to family emergency, they shall be permitted to take a family emergency
- leave of no more than two academic weeks.
- 3. These absences will come from the 12 excused absences. However, if there are more than
- 12 absences in that time, we will grant up to two weeks.
- 4. Meetings
- i. Agenda
- 1. The Executive Vice President shall set the agenda according to the needs of the SGA.
- 2. Committee reports shall consist solely of reports – any pending committee action must be
- reported in advance and dealt with later in the meeting.
- ii. Chair of Senate Meetings
- 1. The Vice President shall chair the meetings of the SGA Senate. If the Vice President
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- yields the chair in accordance with proper parliamentary procedure, or is unable to attend
- a Senate meeting, the President of the Senior Class shall fulfill the duties as Chair.
- iii. Decisions of the Chair
- 1. The chair shall enforce Senate procedures as well as the Constitution and Bylaws,
- including but not limited to ruling motions or conversations out of order. A single member
- (no second is required) may contest such a decision, which is debatable but
- nonamendable, before it takes effect. A two-thirds vote of the Senate shall be necessary to
- overturn the chair’s decision.
- iv. Manner of Presiding and Yielding of the Chair
- 1. The Vice President shall preside the meeting in an orderly, objective and fair manner
- giving opportunity to all Senators to represent their views provided they maintain
- decorum. Furthermore, the Vice President shall use his or her discretion in speaking on
- issues provided he/she maintains objectivity and fairness in the manner of the meeting.
- The Vice President shall yield the chair to a successor any time the item of discussion is
- his or her confirmation, elections, impeachment, or removal.
- v. Order
- 1. The Senate shall follow the most current version of Roberts Rules of Order in its general
- body meetings, subservient to any provisions of the Constitution and Bylaws.
- vi. Moving the Motion
- 1. Following the moving of a motion and a proper second (if required), the Chair shall
- immediately state the motion to the assembly. If the motion may be discussed, the Chair
- shall immediately ask, “Is there any discussion?” and the body shall discuss the motion. If
- the motion may not be discussed, the Chair shall immediately put the motion to a vote.
- vii. Discussion on the Motion
- 1. It is in the interest of the Senate (being a deliberative assembly) to foster productive and
- persuasive speech by each member so long as it is done in an efficient manner. The author
- of the motion shall be given the opportunity to speak first in order to present the reasoning
- behind the motion. Other motions may be moved anytime during discussion. During
- debate, filibusters are not permitted.
- viii. Voting
- 1. Abstentions, used at the individual Senator’s discretion, should only be used in the rare
- case of a direct conflict of interest. Votes become final when the Chair announces the
- vote.
- ix. Straw Polls
- 1. The use of “straw poll” votes is highly discouraged.
- x. Roll Call
- 1. If there is opposition to a motion, then a roll call shall take place.
- 2. For a roll call vote, the Chair shall state the motion and then the Executive Secretary shall
- read the roll of the Senate, and each Senator shall state their vote when their name is
- called. Senators absent at the time of the vote shall be recorded as “absent” (this has no
- bearing on attendance policy but does establish presence or lack of quorum). Per the
- Constitution, all votes and discussions shall be public, except for those permitted to be
- closed by the Constitution.
- xi. Proxy Voting
- 1. Due to the deliberative nature of Senate meetings, and due to the possibility of the
- swaying of one’s opinions during a debate, proxy voting is neither permitted nor accepted.
- III. SENATE LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEES
- 1. Scope
- i. This article shall apply to all committees of the Senate of the Student Government Association
- (“SGA”) and shall not extend farther than senatorial committees.
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 7
- ii. This section is established in concord with Article VI of the Johns Hopkins University
- Undergraduate Student Government Association Constitution (“The Constitution”).
- iii. Should any part of this article be found unconstitutional, such part shall be considered severable
- and the rest of the article shall remain in effect.
- 2. Types of Committees
- i. Per the Constitution, there shall exist two (2) distinct types of committees of the Senate:
- 1. Standing Legislative Committees
- a. Standing Legislative Committees of the Senate shall be established in these
- Bylaws and shall exist in perpetuity.
- b. Standing Legislative Committees of the Senate shall be established to address the
- general business of the Senate and to recommend to the Senate the adoption or
- rejection of legislation.
- c. The number of members of Standing Legislative Committees shall be at the
- discretion of the Executive Vice President when sorting Senators into
- committees, but shall allow for the efficient functioning of the committees.
- 2. Ad-hoc Committees of the Senate
- a. Ad-hoc Committees of the Senate, in accordance with the Constitution, shall be
- established by a 2/3 vote of the Senate and shall automatically expire at the end
- of the academic semester during which they were established.
- b. Ad-hoc Committees of the Senate shall be empaneled to address matters of great
- importance to the student body and may recommend that the Senate take up
- certain proposals through its regular legislative process in order to address
- specific concerns.
- c. The parameters and scope of individual ad-hoc committees shall be stipulated in
- the legislation providing for their specific establishment.
- d. The number of members of Ad-Hoc Committees of the Senate shall be provided
- for in the legislation establishing the particular committees.
- e. An SGA Long-Term Ad-Hoc Committee, appropriately abbreviated as an
- LHAC, shall be a type of ad-hoc committee, adherent to all standard terms and
- requirements of an ad-hoc committee, with the following and express exceptions:
- i. An SGA LHAC shall be established in perpetuity until a clearly
- delineated date of expiration or sunset, or until which time that the
- Senate votes by ⅔ majority to determine that the LHAC’s mandate or
- purpose has elapsed.
- ii. An SGA LHAC may include additional differences from traditional
- ad-hoc committees, provided that those differences are clearly
- delineated in the SGA LHAC’s legislative enactment act and provided
- that those differences do not violate other terms of the SGA Bylaws or
- the SGA Constitution
- 3. Membership of Committees
- a. Sorting of Senators into Standing Legislative Committees of the Senate
- i. Each member of the Senate shall serve on at least one (1) Standing
- Legislative Committee of the Senate, but may serve on more than one
- (1) at the discretion of the Executive Vice President.
- ii. Pursuant to the Constitution, the Executive Vice President shall sort
- Senators into Standing Legislative Committees of the Senate, and
- confirmation of these appointments shall require ratification by a
- plurality of the Senate.
- iii. In executing the Constitutional duty to sort Senators into committees,
- the Executive Vice President shall solicit the wishes of individual
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- Senators; study their individual passions and legislative priorities; if
- prudent, consult with SGA colleagues; and shall thereafter proceed to
- sort Senators into committees at the first Senate General Body meeting
- in a manner which, in the opinion of the Vice President, will allow
- individual Senators to flourish and will best serve the students and
- community of the Johns Hopkins University.
- b. Participation of the Non-Senate Committee Members
- i. Per the Constitution, membership in all committees is open to students
- at large, subject to restrictions provided for herein these Bylaws.
- ii. Per the Constitution, members of committees who are not only duly
- serving members of the Senate may participate fully in committees with
- the express exception of voting.
- 1. Duly serving members of the Senate may participate fully in all
- aspects of the committees on which they serve, including
- voting.
- iii. Membership in certain Standing Legislative Committees of the Senate is
- restricted within these Bylaws.
- iv. Standing Legislative Committees of the Senate not herein restricted
- from doing so may appoint non-Senate members to serve on its
- committee with a 2/3 vote of the Senate members of the committee and
- a 2/3 confirmation of the Senate as a whole.
- v. Determinations of whether membership of individual Ad-hoc
- Committees of the Senate is open to students at large or restricted to
- members of the Senate shall be defined in the legislation providing for
- the establishment of the particular Ad-hoc committee.
- vi. Appointment of non-Senate members to Ad-hoc Committees of the
- Senate shall be made in the legislation providing for the establishment
- of the particular committee.
- 4. Establishment of Standing Legislative Committees of the Senate
- a. The following Standing Legislative Committees of the Senate shall be
- established.
- i. Committee on Academic Affairs
- 1. Membership
- a. The membership of the Committee on Academic
- Affairs is not inherently statutorily restricted on the
- basis of Senate membership.
- 2. Responsibilities
- a. The Committee on Academic Affairs shall be tasked
- with the following responsibilities:
- i. To deal with matters relating to Student
- Advising, the Registrar, the Academic
- Council, and other academic-related organs
- of the University to improve the academic
- atmosphere for students.
- ii. To work with administrators, including the
- Dean of the Krieger School of Arts and
- Sciences and the Dean of the Whiting School
- of Engineering, to advance academic policies
- and programs that fit the needs and desires of
- the student body.
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 9
- iii. To work with the Executive Board and the
- Senior Class Council on matters related to
- Convocation, Commencement, and other
- University academic ceremonies.
- iv. To take up other measures relating to
- academic affairs.
- ii. Committee on Civic Engagement
- 1. Membership
- a. The membership of the Committee on Civic
- Engagement is not inherently statutorily restricted on
- the basis of Senate membership.
- 2. Responsibilities
- a. The Committee on Civic Engagement shall be tasked
- with the following responsibilities:
- i. To promote matters of civic engagement,
- civic involvement and participation, civic
- activism, student activism, community
- engagement in Baltimore and beyond, and
- issues of public, political or civic concern
- that fall beyond the realm of other
- committees.
- ii. To collaborate with JHU student groups
- focused on civic engagement and aid them in
- their efforts.
- iii. To work with other Senate committees, the
- Office of Student Life, the Office of
- Multicultural Affairs, LGBTQ Life, Student
- Disability Service, the Office of Institutional
- Equity, and other relevant academic
- departments and faculty in its
- aforementioned matters of scope whenever
- applicable.
- iii. Committee on Internal Affairs
- 1. Membership
- a. The membership of the Committee on Internal Affairs
- is restricted to duly serving members of the Senate.
- b. The Executive Vice President is the President of the
- Senate and the Senate’s Parliamentarian and shall
- serve as an ex-officio member of the Committee on
- Internal Affairs.
- 2. Responsibilities
- a. The Committee on Internal Affairs shall be tasked
- with the following responsibilities:
- i. To deal with all matters related to the internal
- affairs of the Senate, with the exclusion of
- matters related to the Senate’s budget which
- are restricted to the Committee on Finance.
- ii. To deal with matters related to amendments
- of the SGA Constitution, the SGA Bylaws
- and the Senate Procedural Rules.
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 10
- iii. To deal with matters related to amendments
- of the Committee on Student Elections
- (CSE) Bylaws and other appropriate
- governing student documents, excluding
- revising the SAC Bylaws, a power which is
- reserved to the Committee on Finance, and
- the SGA Judiciary Bylaws, which are
- reserved by the Constitution to the Judiciary
- itself.
- iv. To handle all appointments of SGA officials
- as prescribed by statue, including the
- evaluation of the Executive President’s
- judicial nominees, and to recommend to the
- Senate their appointment or rejection.
- v. To help facilitate the impeachment process
- by holding proceedings to make findings of
- fact and regulation and providing an
- informed perspective to the Senate.
- vi. To conduct ethical or disciplinary hearings of
- SGA members and refer to the Senate such
- cases with its recommendations.
- vii. To deal with all other legislation that relates
- to the internal affairs of the Senate.
- iv. Committee on Finance
- 1. Membership
- a. The membership of the Committee on Finance is
- restricted to duly serving members of the Senate.
- 2. Responsibilities
- a. The Committee on Finance shall be tasked with the
- following responsibilities:
- i. To deal with the financial matters of the
- Student Government, including
- appropriations, funding procedures, and
- financial management.
- ii. To evaluate and vote on all legislation that
- allocates funds from the Senate.
- iii. To collaborate with the Committee on
- Student Organizations and the Student
- Activities Commission (SAC) to guarantee
- the success of student organizations by
- aiding groups through their grant and
- sponsorship request process.
- iv. To advise the Executive Treasurer on matters
- related to funding.
- v. Committee on Health, Safety, and Sustainability
- 1. Membership
- a. The membership of the Committee on Health, Safety,
- and Sustainability is not inherently statutorily
- restricted on the basis of Senate membership.
- 2. Responsibilities
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 11
- a. The Committee on Health, Safety, and Sustainability
- shall be tasked with the following responsibilities:
- i. To deal with matters pertaining to the health
- and safety of the student body.
- ii. To take up measures related to sustainability
- and facilities, as applicable to the Johns
- Hopkins community.
- iii. To work with Campus Safety and Security,
- Student Life, Health and Wellness Center
- administrators, and other University officials
- to advocate and ensure the health, safety, and
- well-being of students.
- iv. To work with the Recycling Center and the
- Office of Sustainability to advance
- sustainable practices. To work with the Vice
- President for Facilities and Real Estate as
- well as other University administrators to
- advance the interests of the student body
- with respect to real estate, buildings and
- grounds, auxiliary services, facilities, and
- related matters.
- vi. Committee on Student Organizations
- 1. Membership
- a. The membership of the Committee on Student
- Organizations is restricted to a minimum of ten, duly
- serving members of the Senate.
- b. The Executive Treasurer is the Chairman of the SAC
- and shall serve as an ex-officio member of the
- Committee on Student Organizations.
- 2. Responsibilities
- a. The Committee on Student Organizations shall be
- tasked with the following responsibilities:
- i. To conduct hearings with leaders of proposed
- student organizations to evaluate and
- determine their recognition status within the
- SGA.
- ii. To work to ensure inter-organizational
- collaboration among the clubs, groups, and
- organizations of the undergraduate
- population at Hopkins.
- iii. To work with student organizations to
- advance their goals and to help facilitate their
- continued success.
- iv. To work with other organs of the SGA,
- including the SAC and the CMC, to ensure
- and promote the success of student
- organizations.
- v. To ensure that University resources,
- including usage of the Hopkins logos,
- funding, facilities and other resources are
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- used only by approved student groups and
- that such resources are distributed fairly and
- utilized responsibly.
- vi. To ensure that approved student
- organizations remain in good standing with
- the SGA and the University, and to
- recommend corrective actions to the Senate
- when groups violate SGA, University, local,
- state, and/or federal rules, regulations, and/or
- laws.
- vii. To establish protocols for applying to be an
- approved student organization and
- regulations governing the types and
- standards of such organizations.
- viii. To work with University officials, including
- the Coordinator for Student Organizations;
- the Associate Dean of Student Engagement;
- administrators of programs housing student
- organizations such as the Office of
- Multicultural Affairs, the Interfaith Center,
- the Department of Athletics and Recreation,
- the Center for Social Concern, the
- Homewood Arts Programs, and the Digital
- Media Center; and other University
- personnel, to advance collaboration and
- standardization of expectations for student
- organizations.
- ix. To take up other measures relating to student
- organizations.
- vii. Committee on Student Services
- 1. Membership
- a. The membership of the Committee on Student
- Services is not inherently statutorily restricted on the
- basis of Senate membership.
- 2. Responsibilities
- a. The Committee on Student Services shall be tasked
- with the following responsibilities:
- i. To evaluate proposals for SGA sponsorship
- of events.
- ii. To work to provide SGA-sponsored services
- to fill needs that the University
- administration cannot or will not provide.
- iii. To work towards improving existing services
- available to students.
- iv. To work with student organizations, the
- University, and businesses to advance the
- aforementioned responsibilities.
- v. To take up other measures relating to student
- services.
- 5. Chairs and Vice-Chairs of the Standing Legislative Committees of the Senate
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 13
- a. Chairs and Vice-Chairs
- i. The Internal Affairs Committee and Finance Committee shall each have
- two chairs automatically.
- ii. Every other standing and ad-hoc committee shall have one chair and
- one vice chair.
- b. Selection of the Chair
- i. The Executive Vice President, as President of the Senate, shall schedule
- and preside over the first meeting of each Standing Legislative
- Committee in order to facilitate, and until, the election of the
- committee’s chair.
- ii. Within one (1) week of the Senate’s first General Body meeting, each
- Standing Legislative Committee of the Senate shall meet to elect its
- Chair or co-chair.
- iii. At this first committee meeting, the Executive Vice President shall call
- to order the committee. The Executive Vice President shall then ask for
- secret paper ballot nominations of committee members to serve as chair
- of the committee. Only duly serving members of the Senate may be
- nominated as committee chairs. Individuals may not serve as chair of
- more than one (1) committee, or as the chair of a committee if they are
- the vice-chair for another committee.
- iv. Upon collecting the nominations, the Executive Vice President shall
- read the nomination aloud and ask each nominee if he or she would like
- to perform the service of committee chair.
- v. Those responding in the affirmative shall each give short speeches
- outlining their qualifications and priorities.
- vi. Without a discussion, each Senate member on the committee shall then
- cast a vote for the chair by confidential paper ballot.
- vii. Any candidate receiving a plurality of votes will then be installed as
- committee chair or co-chair and will be sworn in by the Executive Vice
- President.
- viii. The Executive Vice President and Executive Treasurer, in their
- respective roles as ex-officio members of the Internal Affairs
- Committee and of the Finance Committee, shall also serve as respective
- ex-officio co-chairs of those committees.
- ix. If no candidate receives a plurality, the Executive Vice President shall
- cast a tie breaking vote.
- x. The Committee Chair’s term of office shall extend for the term of the
- Senate.
- c. Selection of the Vice-Chair
- i. The Chair of the Committee (excluding the Internal Affairs and Finance
- committees) must nominate a Vice-Chair for their committee upon their
- election as chair or at the following committee meeting.
- ii. The Vice-Chair of a committee must be a duly elected SGA Senator and
- must be an official member of the committee for which they are a
- Vice-Chair.
- iii. The Vice-Chair must not be the Chair or Vice Chair of another
- committee.
- iv. After the Chair submits their nomination of a Vice-Chair to their
- committee, the committee members must approve the selection with a
- 2/3rds vote.
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 14
- 6. Chairs of the Ad-hoc Committees of the Senate
- a. The legislation providing for the establishment of the particular ad-hoc
- committee shall designate a chair.
- b. The term of the Chair of an Ad-hoc Committee of the Senate shall expire when
- the term of the committee itself expires at the end of the semester.
- 7. Responsibilities of Committee Chairs
- a. Chairs of Standing Legislative Committees of the Senate and Ad-hoc
- Committees of the Senate shall having the following responsibilities:
- i. To issue a committee report at General Body meetings, informing the
- Senate of relevant projects and actions of the committee and its
- members.
- ii. To submit legislation with recommendations to the Executive Vice
- President and Executive Secretary.
- iii. To create the agenda for each committee meeting and publish these
- agendas to the Senate.
- iv. To appoint a member of the respective committee to take the minutes of
- each meeting.
- v. To send a copy of the committee minutes to the Executive Secretary in a
- timely manner.
- vi. To meet regularly with the Executive Board to report on committee
- operations.
- vii. To perform certain other functions as situations necessitate.
- viii. To maintain suggestion boxes as needed to provide for the needs of the
- student body
- 1. It shall be the duty of the chair of the SSC to appoint
- committee members to gather the suggestions left in the boxes.
- 2. To report on the contents of the suggestion boxes bi-weekly at
- SGA general body meetings.
- b. Co-chairs of the Finance and Internal Affairs Committees and Chairs and Vice
- Chairs of Standing Legislative Committees of the Senate and Ad-hoc
- Committees of the Senate shall having the following additional responsibilities:
- i. By the end of September, co-chairs/chair and vice chair must submit a
- cooperation plan to the Executive Vice President detailing an agreement
- between each co-chair/ chair vice chair on how they plan to work
- cooperatively to run their committee
- 1. Plans must include but are not limited to:
- a. Means of communication and response time
- b. Workflow in terms of planning committee meetings
- and projects
- c. Means of conflict resolution
- d. Limited-use Mental Health and Academic Stress
- related provisions under which responsibilities can
- temporarily be waived
- 2. The requirement to have a plan can be waived if both
- co-chairs/the chair and vice chair sign a waiver or otherwise
- inform the Executive Vice President stating that they do not
- feel the need to have a cooperation plan.
- a. If a cooperation plan is waived, a co-chair/chair or
- vice chair has the right to request a cooperation plan
- at any point throughout the year.
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 15
- b. Requests must be sent in an email to the Executive
- Vice President and their co-chair/chair or vice chair,
- and cooperation plans must be created and submitted
- to the Executive Vice President within 10 days of the
- request.
- 3. The Executive Vice President may reject any cooperation plan
- deemed to be insufficient. Rejections can be overturned by a
- 4/5ths vote of the committee that the agreement applies to.
- 4. For cooperation plans concerning the Internal Affairs
- Committee, the Executive President shall fill the role of the
- Executive Vice President in the processes outlined in this
- section of the Bylaws.
- 5. Cooperation plans must be shared with senate committee
- members.
- 6. Cooperation plans may not be changed without the approval of
- the Executive Vice President.
- 7. Failure to follow the rules within this section of the Bylaws is a
- formal violation of the Bylaws, and may lead to the
- consequences associated with such.
- 8. Both co-chairs/chair and vice-chair must express their approval
- of the cooperation plan in writing or email to the Executive
- Vice President.
- 9. If cooperation plans are not submitted and are not waived, the
- co-chairs/chair and vice chair shall be automatically removed
- and a new election for co-chairs/chair or vice chair will be
- held.
- 10. If one co-chair/chair or vice chair believes that it was not
- possible for them to submit a cooperation plan because the
- other co-chair/chair or vice chair refused to cooperate, they
- may petition the Judiciary to rule on the question of whether
- failure to submit a cooperative plan was solely or mostly by the
- fault of one of the co-chairs/chair or vice chair. If they rule that
- to be the case, the co-chair/chair or vice chair who was ruled to
- have been mostly or completely responsible for the failure to
- produce a mutually-agreed upon cooperative plan shall be
- removed as committee chair.
- a. After chair removal, the committee must take a vote
- to appoint a new chair.
- i. The removed chair may not participate in
- committee chair-related deliberations or vote
- on matters concerning committee chairs after
- their removal, and may not become the chair
- of any committee through the end of their
- term.
- ii. The vice chair shall not automatically
- become the chair if the chair is removed
- through this process, but may run in the chair
- election.
- b. After Vice Chair removal, the Chair shall appoint a
- new Vice Chair, subject to committee approval
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 16
- c. Vice-Chairs of Standing Legislative Committees of the Senate and Ad-Hoc
- Committees shall have the following responsibilities:
- i. Vice-Chairs shall fulfill the duties of the chair whenever they are not
- present at meetings or otherwise unavailable. They must fulfill all the
- responsibilities of the chair when the chair is on leave or absent at a
- meeting, and highlighted duties include:
- 1. Chairing committee meetings when the chair is absent
- 2. Updating the Senate on committee activities during GBM
- when the chair is absent
- ii. Vice-Chairs shall assist the Chairs in all their duties as agreed upon
- between the Chair, the Vice-Chair, and the committee at large.
- 8. Committee Meetings
- a. The Standing Legislative Committees of the Senate shall be required to regularly
- meet at least once every two (2) weeks, with the expressed exception of the
- Committee on Finance and the Committee on Internal Affairs, which shall meet
- as needed at the discretion of the Committee Co-Chairs.
- b. The Chairs of Standing Legislative Committees of the Senate that are required to
- meet regularly shall, at the first committee meeting of the term, discuss with
- committee members potential times to meet at least once every two (2) weeks.
- c. During the first meeting of every Standing Legislative Committee of the Senate,
- the Chairs – if they choose – shall designate one committee member to take
- minutes during every committee meeting, otherwise they themselves shall take
- the minutes.
- d. In accordance with the Constitution, any student is welcome to observe any
- committee meetings.
- e. Committees may, in accordance with the Constitution, close meetings to discuss
- sensitive personnel matters by a 2/3 vote of the committee. However, all voting
- must take place in public with individual votes recorded as prescribed by Senate
- rules and legislation.
- f. Any member of the three SGA branches is welcome to attend committee
- meetings, even those closed by the committee itself.
- 9. Removal of Chairs or Members of a Committee of the Senate
- a. The Chair of a Standing Legislative Committee of the Senate or an Ad-hoc
- Committee of the Senate may be removed by a ¾ vote of the committee itself, or
- by a 2/3 vote of the Senate as a whole.
- b. A member of a committee may only be removed by a ¾ vote of the Senate as a
- whole.
- c. If a Committee chooses to remove a chair by a 2/3 vote of the Committee itself,
- they must abide by the following procedures.
- i. A senate member of a committee must submit the signatures of at least
- 1/2 of the senate members of the committee calling for the removal of
- the committee chair to the Executive Vice President.
- 1. When there is an odd amount of senators in the committee, the
- number of signatures required shall be rounded up.
- ii. The Executive Vice President shall convene a meeting no later than 2
- weeks after the receipt of the signatures calling for the removal of a
- committee chair to hear arguments for and against chair removal and to
- hold a vote to remove the chair.
- iii. At a minimum, the chair under consideration for removal must be
- allowed the opportunity to speak, and a senator calling for the chair’s
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 17
- removal must be allowed an equal opportunity to speak. Speaking order
- should be determined by some form of chance.
- iv. After speeches from the chair under consideration and from an accuser,
- senate members of the committee shall enter into deliberations. The
- chair under consideration of removal must not be present for
- deliberations. After deliberations have concluded, senate members of
- the committee must vote by secret ballot on whether to remove the
- chair. The chair under consideration for removal cannot participate in
- this ballot.
- v. If the chair is removed, they shall be thanked for their service and
- downgraded to a regular senate member of the committee.
- vi. Upon removal of a single chair of a committee, the Executive Vice
- President shall hold an election for a new chair no later than one week
- after the removal of the original chair.
- 1. The Vice-Chair shall not automatically succeed the Chair in the
- case of Chair removal by Committee or Senate vote, but may
- run in the election to replace the chair.
- vii. The removed chair may not run in the chair election held to determine
- their replacement.
- viii. The Executive Vice President cannot be removed from the Internal
- Affairs Committee and the Executive Treasurer cannot be removed from
- the Finance Committee.
- d. Removal of the chair of a committee, or of a member of the committee, done by
- the full senate, shall proceed in identical fashion to impeachment proceedings as
- prescribed by the Constitution and further expounded upon by supporting
- statutes.
- e. Vice-Chairs may be removed by the Chair of a committee in consultation and
- with the consent of the Executive Board.
- i. In order to remove a Vice-Chair, the Chair of a committee must submit
- in writing/email why they feel that they require a new Vice-Chair to the
- Executive President and Vice President.
- ii. Upon receiving the request to remove a Vice-Chair, the Executive Board
- shall convene separate meetings with the Chair and Vice Chair of the
- committee to further discuss the issue, and may convene a meeting with
- the Chair and Vice Chair if desired.
- iii. If the Executive Board determines that whatever the Chair believes
- necessitates the removal of the Vice Chair cannot be resolved, the
- Executive Board shall consent to the removal of the Vice Chair and the
- Chair shall appoint a new Vice Chair.
- 1. The Executive Board should generally defer to the judgement
- of the Chair
- iv. The Chair of a committee may also remove a Vice-Chair by submitting
- written notice to the members of the committee of why they want to
- remove the Vice-Chair.
- 1. The committee shall then vote on the removal of the
- Vice-Chair, with a 2/3rds vote required to remove the
- Vice-Chair.
- f. Any member of the Senate who is impeached in accordance with the Constitution
- and relieved from the duties of the Senate are thus automatically removed from
- all Standing Legislative Committees of the Senate and Ad-hoc Committees of the
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 18
- Senate.
- g. Chairs and Vice-Chairs of Committees may resign from Committee leadership
- positions.
- i. If the Chair resigns, the Vice-Chair shall temporarily serve as Chair
- until new Chair elections can be held under the procedures described
- above.
- ii. If the Vice-Chair resigns, the Chair shall appoint a new Vice-Chair.
- iii. Notices of resignation of Committee leadership must be sent to the
- Executive Vice President.
- 10. Committee Vacancies
- a. Any vacancies within Standing Legislative Committees of the Senate or Ad-hoc
- Committees of the Senate created by the departure of a member of the Senate
- shall be filled by the Executive Vice President and confirmed by a plurality of the
- Senate.
- b. Any vacancies within Standing Legislative Committees of the Senate or Ad-hoc
- Committees of the Senate created by the departure of a non-member of the
- Senate shall be left vacant unless filled by Senate legislation.
- IV. LEGISLATION OF THE SENATE
- 1. Scope
- i. This article shall apply to all legislation taken up by the Legislative Branch of the SGA.
- ii. Should any part of this article be found unconstitutional, such part shall be considered severable
- and the rest of the article shall remain in effect.
- 2. Process
- i. Legislation shall be written by any member of the Legislative or Executive Branches of SGA. ii.
- Legislation shall take one of two forms:
- 1. A bill, which formally enacts a law within the scope defined by the Constitution; or
- 2. A resolution, which formally declares the opinion of the Senate and thus the Student
- Body.
- ii. Legislation shall require and document the presence of:
- 1. At least one (1) introducer (also known as an author or composer);
- 2. At least two (2) co-sponsors of the Legislative Branch who are not introducers;
- iii. Legislation shall be written in any mainstream serif font (Times New Roman, Palatino, Garamond,
- Baskerville, etc.) and, by precedent, be headed with the round, golden-blue seal of the SGA.
- iv. Upon receiving sponsorship of at least two (2) members of the Legislative Branch, the original
- sponsor of the Bill or Resolution shall submit the legislation to the Executive Vice President.
- v. The Executive Vice President shall then forward the legislation to the appropriate Committee Chair
- for the committee’s consideration and alert the Senate of the received legislation and its committee
- hearing date.
- vi. All legislation must be considered by a Committee of the Senate before being considered by the
- Senate itself. In the most exceptional of cases, the Executive Vice President shall be empowered to
- waive this requirement in order to allow the Senate to directly address pressing matters.
- vii. Once legislation is referred to a Committee of the Senate, the Committee shall deliberate and vote
- upon a recommendation to the Senate for the legislation’s adoption or rejection. A plurality vote
- shall be necessary to recommend legislation’s adoption or rejection, or to undertake other
- committee actions. A committee may also elect to advance legislation to the Senate with no
- recommendation, if after significant deliberation, the committee elects to do so. A tie vote within a
- committee brings the legislation before the Senate with no recommendation.
- 1. Upon passage in committee, legislation may be amended by mutual agreement of the
- committee chair and the legislation’s introducer so long as the amendment does not alter
- the intention of the bill.
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 19
- viii. All legislation, pursuant to the Constitution, must be adopted by the full Senate. A Committee
- alone is not empowered to take any direct action other than to recommend and refer action to the
- Senate as a whole.
- ix. Upon receiving the recommendation of a Committee of the Senate, the Executive Vice President
- shall introduce the legislation to the Senate and call upon its original sponsor to discuss its merits
- and field questions from the Senate.
- x. The legislation shall then be deliberated upon, pursuant to the Senate’s rules and procedures, and
- the Senate shall eventually vote for the legislation’s adoption or rejection.
- xi. If the Senate votes to adopt the legislation, the Executive Vice President shall affix the Seal of the
- Senate to the legislation. The Executive President, Executive Vice President, Executive Treasurer
- and Executive Secretary will then place their signatures at the bottom of the legislation so as to
- confirm its adoption. The legislation will then have the full force and effect of law.
- 1. For ceremonial purposes, the introducer(s) and co-sponsors shall have the right to sign the
- legislation as well.
- xii. If the Senate votes to reject the legislation, the Executive Vice President shall indicate its rejection
- and place their signature at the bottom so as to confirm its rejection. The Executive Vice President
- shall not affix the Seal of the Senate to rejected legislation.
- V. STUDENT ACTIVITIES COMMISSION
- 1. General Policies
- i. The Student Activities Commission, hereafter referred to as SAC, shall be a subsidiary of the SGA
- Finance Committee.
- 1. In the event that there are 8 or less members in the Finance Committee, then all Finance
- Committee members shall be voting members of SAC.
- 2. In the event that there are more than 8 members in the Finance Committee, at each
- convening of SAC, it shall be the responsibility of the Executive Treasurer to ensure that
- no more than 8 Finance Committee members attend as voting members.
- a. In the event that there are more than 8 Finance Committee members interested in
- attending a SAC meeting as a voting member, the Executive Treasurer shall
- allow the first 8 members who RSVP for the SAC meeting to attend as voting
- members.
- 3. All Finance Committee members are required to attend any SAC meeting regardless of
- whether or not they are a voting member for said meeting.
- 4. All funding decisions will be passed by a simple majority.
- ii. The SAC shall be comprised of eight voting Commissioners, appointed by the SGA Executive
- Treasurer and confirmed by a majority vote of the Senate.
- iii. All SAC Commissioners and finance committee members shall be eligible to 1 vote in every
- decision.
- 1. The SGA Executive Treasurer shall only vote in the case of a tie.
- 2. Any person at a SAC meeting who is a part of an organization that submitted a grant, shall
- be asked to leave while the committee discusses the grant and will be unable to vote on
- said grant.
- 3. All votes shall be a simple majority vote
- iv. The SGA Executive Treasurer shall chair the SAC.
- v. All student groups recognized by the SGA will be eligible for funding from the SAC including
- monthly grants; however groups which receive annual funding from another source will not be
- eligible for an annual allocation.
- 1. The SAC will not consider grants submitted by individual students or groups not
- recognized by the SGA.
- 2. Class Councils will be eligible for monthly grant funds.
- vi. The SGA Treasurer shall have the right with approval of a ⅔ majority vote of the Senate to remove
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 20
- any member of SAC.
- 1. The collective SAC body (including both commissioners and Finance Committee
- Members) can request the removal of a commissioner by a ⅔ vote to then be approved by
- a ⅔ majority vote of the Senate.
- vii. The SAC will evaluate grant proposals based on the following four criteria:
- 1. The SAC Funding Guidelines
- 2. Feasibility
- 3. Impact
- 4. other funding sources that the club is receiving for the proposal.
- viii. The SAC shall be responsible for maintaining a set of funding policies and caps by which all
- decisions shall be based. These will be set annually and approved or amended by the Senate in the
- month prior to reregistration. In addition, they must publish these policies and caps to the student
- body once approved by the Senate.
- ix. SAC has the right to revoke funding by a ⅔ majority vote of the SAC for violation of SAC
- funding guidelines or policies.
- x. SAC is responsible to provide budgets and balances to student organizations if requested.
- xi. The Senate can overturn any decision of the SAC by a ⅔ majority vote.
- xii. The chair of the finance committee will be required to provide bi-weekly updates to the Senate on
- all decisions made by SAC in addition to the regular updates of the treasurer.
- 2. Annual Grants
- i. Annual appropriation decisions shall be made by the SAC within one month of the completion of
- reregistration.
- ii. Organizations will not be eligible for annual grants if they receive annual funding outside of SAC.
- iii. Organizations that have been recognized or reestablished shall not be eligible for annual
- allocations until the following school year. This includes organizations recognized or reestablished
- in the fall semester.
- 1. This will exclude governing boards, who will become eligible for annual grants
- immediately upon recognition.
- iv. The Treasurer can then, if necessary, apply a universally proportional cut across all groups to
- ensure that the given amount is equal to the amount available to give out.
- v. The final annual budget allocations will require Senate confirmation by a majority vote.
- 1. The allocations must be submitted a minimum of 10 days prior to the vote.
- 2. The Senate has the right to amend any budget on the floor by a majority vote.
- vi. Neither the SAC nor SGA shall publish the annual allocations.
- vii. Should any student organization fall into debt with their University account, they will immediately
- become ineligible for all SAC funding including both the annual allocation and monthly grants
- until there is a positive or zero balance in their account.
- 1. SAC must notify organizations in the deficit at least 30 days prior to the annual allocation
- process to allow the organizations to correct it before allocations.
- 3. Monthly Grants
- i. The SAC shall meet bi-weekly (once every other week) during the fall and spring semester starting
- in October based on a schedule set at the start of the semester to discuss monthly budget requests.
- ii. Organizations are eligible for monthly grants immediately upon SGA recognition.
- iii. Each meeting will be given a maximum budget set as the total amount of money in the monthly
- grant account divided by the number of meetings in the school year.
- 1. Any unused funds from previous meetings will be redistributed to all following meetings.
- iv. In order for a meeting to commence, a majority of SAC must be present.
- v. A single group cannot receive more than 40% of the meeting budget.
- 4. Recruitment Procedures
- i. Each year, the executive treasurer will be responsible for filling any vacancies left open by
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 21
- members who have either graduated or given up their duties on the SAC.
- ii. The recruiting process shall be divided into three parts
- 1. An application designed to gauge interest in and knowledge of the body
- 2. An interview with the treasurer and SAC board members
- 3. Confirmation from a majority vote of the Senate.
- iii. SAC membership should be based on the merit of the individual and should be justifiable to the
- SGA Senate for confirmation.
- iv. All appointments made by the SGA Treasurer shall have to be approved by the SGA Senate by a
- simple majority.
- VI. SENATE VACANCIES
- 1. In the event of any vacancy, the vacancy shall be announced to the relevant constituents through an email
- that includes a notification of the process and/or application by which the position shall be filled.
- 2. Senatorial Vacancy
- i. In the case of a Senatorial vacancy, the remaining members of the Class Council shall choose a
- new Senator, following the process herein prescribed subject to any constitutional restrictions.
- 1. The Class President shall immediately assemble the Class Council and inform them of the
- vacancy.
- 2. The Class Council shall then collectively draft an application to fill the vacant seat.
- 3. This application shall then be disseminated to every member of the class within seven (7)
- business days of the vacancy being created. Business days shall refer to all days when
- University classes are held on the Homewood campus.
- 4. The Class Council shall then conduct interviews of any candidates it deems qualified for
- the position. These interviews must conclude within seven (7) business days of the
- dissemination of the applications.
- 5. Within two (2) business days of these interviews, the Class Council must vote on
- candidates. Voting to confirm a new senator shall follow the plurality scheme; the
- candidate receiving the most votes shall be nominated by the Class Council to fill the seat.
- ii. The Senate shall then, in accordance with the Constitution, vote to confirm or reject the Class
- Council’s nominee.
- iii. If the Senate votes to reject the nominee, the Class Council shall immediately convene again to
- either vote on one of the other candidates or restart the entire process.
- iv. The relevant Class President and the Executive Board shall keep the Student Body informed of
- any decisions throughout this process.
- 3. Class Presidential Vacancy
- i. In the case of a Class Presidential vacancy, the remaining members of the Class Council shall
- choose a new President from among themselves, following the process herein prescribed subject to
- any constitutional restrictions.
- 1. The Executive Vice President shall immediately assembly the Class Council and inform
- them of the vacancy.
- 2. The Class Council shall then collectively gather secret paper ballot nominations of Class
- Council members to fill the vacant seat from within the Council itself.
- 3. Upon collecting the nominations, the Executive Vice President shall read the nomination
- aloud and ask each nominee if he or she would like to perform the service of Class
- President.
- 4. Those responding in the affirmative shall each give short speeches outlining their
- qualifications and priorities at the next Class Council meeting (within five business days
- of the vacancy being created).
- 5. Without discussion, each council member – including the outgoing Class President – shall
- then cast a vote for Class President by roll call vote.
- 6. Voting to confirm a new Class President shall follow the plurality scheme; the candidate
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 22
- receiving the most votes shall be elected.
- a. If a tie occurs, a second vote shall be held.
- b. If another tie occurs, successive elections will occur until a President is selected.
- ii. Once nominated by the Class Council, the nominee must face a confirmation vote by the Senate at
- its next meeting.
- VII. COMMUNICATIONS AND MARKETING COMMISSION
- 1. The Communications and Marketing Commission, hereafter referred to as the CMC, shall be a subsidiary
- group of the Student Government Association organized within the Office of the Executive Secretary.
- 2. The CMC shall operate according to a set of CMC Bylaws set by the Senate.
- 3. The CMC shall be tasked with all matters related to the marketing and promotion of the SGA, including but
- not limited to: social media management, website maintenance and construction, and graphic design.
- 4. The CMC shall be comprised of at least five voting Communications and Marketing Aides, appointed by
- the SGA Executive Secretary with the advice and consent of two-thirds of the Senate.
- i. In the event of a vacancy, the SGA Executive Secretary may appoint replacement members as
- outlined in the preceding section or may divide responsibilities among the remaining CMC
- members.
- 5. The SGA Executive Secretary shall chair the CMC but shall only vote when a tie exists.
- 6. Quorum shall be set at half plus one of the membership of CMC.
- 7. The Senate shall, under the Constitution, retain its oversight prerogatives over the CMC.
- VIII. POLICY RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION
- 1. The Policy Research and Development Commission, hereafter referred to as PRDC, shall be a subsidiary
- group of the Student Government Association organized within the Office of the Executive Vice President.
- 2. The PRDC shall operate according to a set of PRDC Bylaws, which shall elaborate on matters not
- delineated here. The PRDC Bylaws shall be set by the Senate.
- 3. The PRDC shall be comprised of at least five voting Policy Advisors, appointed by the SGA Executive Vice
- President with the advice and consent of two-thirds of the Senate.
- i. At the discretion of the Executive Vice President, a Policy Advisor may be promoted to a “Senior
- Policy Advisor of [area of expertise]” if said Policy Advisor has a specific portfolio of area of
- issues on which they are uniquely capable, experienced, or qualified to advise the SGA.
- ii. In the event of a vacancy, the SGA Executive Vice President may appoint replacement members or
- may divide responsibilities among the remaining PRDC Policy Advisors.
- 4. The PRDC shall be tasked with:
- i. Service to and Collaboration with Additional SGA Organs
- 1. The Senate, committees, class councils, the SAC, the CMC, the Judiciary and the CSE
- may request that the PRDC conduct research on an issue on their behalf.
- ii. Service to and Collaboration with JHU Student Organizations
- 1. Undergraduate student organizations may request the aid of the PRDC in conducting
- policy research, development, and statistical analysis in their own activities.
- 2. The PRDC is expected to prioritize reports requested by the SGA, then focus on reports
- for student organizations.
- iii. Conducting policy research and development on behalf of the SGA.
- 1. Harnessing advanced research tools to execute its duties, including but not limited to:
- a. Articles obtained from accredited academic institutions or publications
- b. Government reports or publications
- c. Documents in the JHU Sheridan Libraries Special Collections and Archives
- d. Computer code (Java, C, C+, Python, R, MatLab, etc.)
- e. ArcGIS
- f. Stata
- g. SPSS
- h. ERDAS
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 23
- i. ENVI
- iv. Publishing Reports
- 1. The PRDC shall have the ability to make reports to the Senate and other organs of the
- SGA based on its research. The PRDC shall make at least 1 report to the Senate every
- semester.
- 2. The PRDC shall produce and publish publicly at least 2 policy reports per semester.
- 3. The PRDC shall have the ability to send reports to the University administration.
- 4. Reports may include a recommended course of action if and only if the recommended
- course of action is (a) supported by the data in the report and (b) the recommended course
- of action has been formally endorsed by the Senate through motion or formal resolution.
- v. The SGA Executive Vice President shall chair the PRDC but shall only vote when a tie exists.
- vi. Quorum shall be set at half plus one of the membership of the PRDC.
- vii. The Senate shall, under the Constitution, retain its oversight prerogatives over the PRDC.
- IX. STUDENT GROUPS
- 1. Scope
- i. This article shall apply to all dealings with current and proposed student organizations by the
- Committee on Student Organizations and the SGA Senate.
- ii. Should any part of this article be found unconstitutional, such part shall be considered severable
- and the rest of the article shall remain in effect.
- 2. Recognition of Proposed Student Organizations
- i. The SGA Senate has, under the Constitution, jurisdiction over the appointment process of new
- student organizations.
- ii. The Committee on Student Organizations shall receive applications for proposed student
- organizations and determine, along with the Coordinator of Student Organizations, which Category
- these groups fall under.
- 1. All JHU student organizations currently categorized as: Academic and Research, Center
- for Social Concern, Dean of Student Life Charter Organizations, Sports Clubs and
- Fraternity and Sorority Life will be eligible for additional recognition by SGA and thus
- eligible for SAC monthly grants.
- a. For annual grant eligibility, they must drop their recognition outside of SGA.
- 2. They will be reviewed and confirmed by a majority vote of the Committee on Student
- Organizations on a rolling basis.
- iii. The Committee on Student Organizations shall conduct hearings with the Coordinator of Student
- Organizations and leaders of proposed groups to evaluate the uniqueness and feasibility of their
- mission, the establishment of a longitudinal organizational structure, the level of risk and their
- contribution to on-campus student life.
- iv. The Committee on Student Organizations shall vote on whether to recognize the existence and
- provide funding for proposed student organizations. Committee quorum and a simple majority is
- required for the committee’s determination to be in effect.
- 1. The Committee’s decision shall be referred to the Coordinator of Student Organizations,
- by the end of the academic term at which the application was submitted, to finalize the
- new group registration process.
- 2. The Committee’s decision shall be referred to the SGA Treasurer and the Student
- Activities Commission to give new organizations access to start-up funds and student
- group grants.
- v. A decision to recognize or deny a proposed student organization by the Committee on Student
- Organizations can be appealed by any SGA Senator with a simple majority vote, at which point
- the General Body will evaluate the proposed student organization and vote on a final determination
- of its recognition.
- 3. Current Student Organizations
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 24
- i. The SGA Senate is, under the Constitution, empowered to pass legislation governing student
- groups.
- ii. All student organizations recognized by the SGA Senate shall undergo a yearly review of their
- operations by the Committee on Student Organizations, upon which their yearly budget grant from
- SAC shall be contingent.
- iii. A decision to revoke recognition of an existing student organization by the Committee on Student
- Organizations can be appealed by any SGA Senator with a simple majority vote, at which point
- the General Body will evaluate the student organization and vote on a final determination of its
- recognition.
- iv. Student groups may not disallow any member the right to vote with regard to race, color, creed,
- religion, national or ethnic origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, citizenship, or
- handicap. This requirement may be waived in circumstances in which an individual group has a
- specific reason – related to the impending graduation of group members – as to why members set
- to graduate in the academic year following the election should not be allowed to vote in a group
- election.
- 1. If the group wishes to waive this requirement, they must present a case to the SGA Senate
- explaining why graduating members should not be allowed to vote in an election. If the
- SGA rules in the group’s favor, then the class of graduating members will not be allowed
- to vote. The disallowance of graduating members, if approved, must apply to every
- member of the group, without exception, who is to graduate in the semester following the
- election.
- v. Student groups must ensure that all students have the right to express their chosen pronoun, chosen
- name, and gender identity in all documents, programs, and material.
- vi. All laws passed by the SGA governing approved student organizations shall be compiled into a
- singular document and sent to the leaders of the student organization at the beginning of each
- school year.
- vii. All Senators should be paired with a set number of student organizations, with Senators belonging
- to the Committee on Student Organizations taking on 3-4 organizations more than those not on the
- committee. Upon the inauguration of freshmen senators, they shall be assigned to a number of
- organizations equal to that of other senators. The senator originally assigned to that organization
- shall be retained as an advisor to the freshman senator.
- 1. The procedures for pairing shall be the duty and discretion of the Chair(s) of the CSO and
- shall take place by mid-July at the earliest.
- 2. No Senator should be paired with an organization that would constitute a conflict of
- interest.
- viii. The senators shall act as a point of contact for the student organizations that they are paired with
- and should be in regular communication.
- 1. The senators shall be responsible for first contacting their paired student organizations
- within the week following the pairings of the Senators to organizations.
- ix. The senators should help guide their student organizations to the correct sources of information or
- committee.
- 4. Student and Student Organization Application Updates
- i. The SGA shall strive to keep students and student organizations apprised of the status of their
- applications to itself or its constituent bodies – including committees, class councils, the SAC, and
- the CMC.
- 1. For applications requiring two or more weeks to approve or deny, the following measures
- shall be used to maintain these channels of communication:
- a. Students shall have the right to request an update on their application’s progress
- every two weeks, even if a final outcome cannot be provided at that time.
- b. For each application process, the SGA shall publish an estimated timeline with
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 25
- general stages and timeframes on the process of approval and denial, as well as
- relevant points of contacts, on the SGA website.
- i. The SGA shall email the aforementioned timeline to all application
- submissions’ authors.
- X. INSTITUTIONAL MEMORY
- 1. Records
- i. Public Disclosure
- 1. All SGA records shall be presented to the public in an online JHBox that is accessible in
- less than 2 clicks from the SGA website homepage or 4 clicks from the SGA’s social
- media pages.
- a. Any SGA document deliberated in the public sphere – legislation, minutes, and
- working documents – shall be placed into JHBox within a week of creation.
- ii. Freedom of Information
- 1. Any JHU undergraduate’s request for SGA information sent to HopkinsGroups or the
- SGA website shall be honored within a week of request, and if information cannot be
- provided, a legitimate legal, or personal privacy-related reason shall be provided in
- writing. Denied requests may be appealed to the Judiciary. All requests, fulfilled or
- denied, shall be listed in the SGA public records.
- iii. Longevity
- 1. At the end of every academic year, the Internal Affairs Committee shall store all of SGA’s
- digital records for protection in a secondary technological archive. The records shall be
- housed in the SGA Office.
- iv. Minutes
- 1. Minutes shall, at the very least, always include the following:
- a. The date, time, and location of a meeting.
- b. Those present at and absent from a SGA meeting, including whether the absence
- is excused or unexcused.
- c. Any guests in attendance at the meeting.
- d. The matters discussed in a meeting.
- e. The main ideas discussed within each matter.
- f. The major points or motions raised during the meeting.
- g. All votes made during the meeting, conditional upon a final bill vote being
- executed by roll call, each senator’s vote will be recorded.
- 2. Minutes shall be made available to the Executive Secretary no later than a week from the
- meeting at which they were recorded. Failure to send minutes shall be noted on the SGA
- website.
- 3. Worklog
- a. An SGA work log shall be created at the beginning of the school year, no later
- than the first General Body Meeting, by the Executive Secretary of SGA. The
- SGA work log shall be made accessible on the SGA website.
- b. It shall be the responsibility of the Executive Secretary to ensure that the work
- log is continually updated by SGA members and posted on the SGA website. It is
- encouraged that individual SGA members fill out the log.
- c. The SGA work log shall compile all the legislation, non-legislative projects,
- roles, and responsibilities of individual SGA members.
- d. An example SGA work log was created in March [link]. This format can be used
- as a template.
- XI. INTERNAL ACCOUNTABILITY
- 1. Impeachment
- i. Impeachment shall be defined as the reprimand of a member by no less than a 2/3 vote of the
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 26
- Senate for any legitimate reason outlined in the Constitution and/or Bylaws.
- ii. Any impeachment may be appealed to the Judiciary within seven (7) days.
- iii. A mark of impeachment shall be made in the public record and this mark shall be kept on the
- record until the end of the semester, at which time the impeachment shall be lifted.
- 2. Removal
- i. Removal shall be defined as the removal of an SGA member from their office by the processes
- outlined in the Constitution and/or Bylaws. If removed, the removal shall be noted in the public
- record and the SGA member shall be stripped of all titles and privileges.
- XII. SUPREMACY
- 1. The Constitution, these Bylaws, and the Senate Procedural Rules herein prescribed shall supersede
- legislation of the Senate and shall retain supremacy, in conjunction with the Constitution, over any other
- SGA laws and governing documents of subsidiary bodies and student organizations.
- 2. Should any part of these Bylaws be ruled unconstitutional, such part shall be considered severable and the
- rest of the document shall remain valid and enforceable.
- XIII. AMENDMENTS AND RATIFICATION
- 1. These Bylaws, unless specified below, may only be amended and ratified by a two-thirds vote of the entire
- membership of the Senate.
- 2. Semantic Amendments
- i. Amendments related to incorrect grammar or specifying acronyms may be made by the Internal
- Affairs without a Senate vote.
- 1. Internal Affairs Committee will notify the Senate of these changes.
- XIV. CAUCUSES
- 1. Formation
- i. In order to form a caucus, the following criteria must be met:
- 1. Formation must be initiated by an SGA Senate member
- 2. Submission of a bill establishing a caucus that contains the following:
- a. Rules for caucus (granted that they do not supercede the general guidelines of
- caucuses)
- b. Purpose of the caucus
- c. Goals of the caucus
- d. Why there is a need for this caucus on campus
- e. List of at least 10 interested individuals
- f. List of at least 3 potential partner student organizations
- 3. Caucuses must be approved by a 2/3rds vote of the Senate
- 2. Leadership:
- i. Each caucus must have, at a minimum, a Chair and a Vice-Chair
- 1. The Chair of the caucus must be an elected member of the Senate or the Executive Board.
- 2. The Vice Chair must be a member of the Senate, the Executive Board, an Executive Board
- Commission, a former SGA elected member, or a non-senate member of a standing
- committee.
- ii. The Chair of the caucus shall be responsible for the following duties:
- 1. The Chair shall serve as the chief executive officer of the caucus.
- 2. The Chair shall be the official spokesperson of the caucus.
- 3. The Chair shall preside at and lead all meetings of the caucus and shall prepare the
- meeting agendas.
- 4. The Chair shall coordinate elections within their caucus by the end of September.
- 5. The Chair shall be responsible for overseeing all administrative duties for the caucus.
- 6. The chair shall also be responsible for ensuring that there is a Caucus page on the SGA
- website that contains leadership information and all meeting minutes.
- iii. The Vice Chair shall be responsible for the following duties:
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 27
- 1. Record detailed minutes at all meetings for the caucus and shall keep them on file.
- 2. The Vice Chair shall manage any and all internal and external organizational
- correspondence, as requested by the Chair.
- 3. The Vice Chair shall maintain all membership records for the caucus, including updating
- the roster and member attendance sheet.
- 4. The Vice Chair shall be responsible for reserving rooms and spaces for all meetings and
- events.
- 5. In the event that the Chair is unable to lead meetings or fulfill other administrative
- responsibilities, the Vice Chair shall step in momentarily as their proxy.
- 6. Upon resignation of the Chair of a caucus, the Vice-Chair shall serve as interim chair until
- new elections are held.
- a. Eligibility rules of interim chairmanship shall follow that of Vice Chair and not
- Chair.
- iv. Each caucus may specify additional leadership roles in their Caucus Rules Bill.
- v. Leadership Election Procedures:
- 1. The Chair and Vice-Chair of the caucus must be elected by the SGA Senate in a General
- Body Meeting.
- a. This must be completed within one month of the approval of a caucus
- 2. In order to run for a leadership position, a candidate must be nominated by a Senator
- during the General Body Meeting in which the election shall take place.
- a. Incumbent Chairs or Vice-Chairs in the Caucus for which the election is for, may
- not nominate candidates for either position.
- 3. Each candidate must speak for up to five minutes on why they should be elected to the
- position they are running for.
- a. If there is only one candidate nominated for a position, the Senate shall move
- directly into voting procedure for the nominee.
- b. If there are multiple candidates, after the speeches, Senators may motion for a
- Q&A, a Moderated Caucus, or to move into voting procedure.
- i. If there are no motions for a moderated caucus or a Q&A, the Senate
- shall move directly into voting procedure for the position being
- discussed.
- c. After speeches and optional discussion, the Senate shall move into voting
- procedure.
- 4. A candidate for a position must win a majority of the votes to obtain the position they are
- running for.
- a. If there are more than two candidates and neither gets a majority of the vote, the
- Senate shall move into a second round of voting, with the candidate who got the
- least votes in the prior round of voting taken out of consideration for the position.
- b. This process shall continue until a candidate gets a majority of the vote.
- 5. Elections for each position shall be held during one of the first three General Body
- Meetings of each year’s Senate. New elections shall be held during the academic year
- upon the resignation of the Chair or Vice-Chair of the caucus, or upon the receipt of the
- signatures of 2/3rds of the Senate.
- a. Upon resignation of Chair or Vice-Chair, new elections must be held within two
- weeks of resignation. If the resignation occurs during a time in which the next
- GBM is farther than two weeks away (for example, during winter break), the
- election shall be carried out at the next GBM.
- b. Between the resignation of the Chair and the election of a new chair, the Vice
- Chair will serve as interim Chair, and the caucus will vote on a temporary
- replacement for the Vice Chair.
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 28
- i. Upon resignation of the Vice Chair, the chair will determine who will
- serve as interim Vice Chair until a new election can be held.
- 3. Powers and Responsibilities of Caucuses
- i. Caucuses shall work to advance, represent the needs and concerns of, and promote greater equality
- for the community that they represent.
- ii. Actions that caucuses are authorized to carry out include without Senate Approval include:
- 1. Endorsing, suggesting, or otherwise encouraging legislation aimed to help the
- constituency they represent
- 2. Reviewing and providing feedback on whether legislation passed by SGA is as inclusive
- of and mindful to the needs of the constituency they represent as possible.
- 3. Acting as a safe space for the constituency they represent, and providing meaningful
- opportunities for the constituency they represent to convene and discuss pertinent issues.
- 4. Holding General Body Meetings with interested students and interested student groups to
- discuss whatever issues are deemed relevant by the caucus.
- 5. Running a Social Media Account
- 6. Any actions not included in this list require further action before the caucus may carry
- them out, which shall be described within these bylaws.
- iii. Events and Initiatives
- 1. There are two routes for initiatives to be approved:
- a. In order to work on events and initiatives, caucuses can present their initiative to
- a GBM (to ensure awareness within the Senate)
- i. Any relevant legislative committees can comment / provide feedback
- ii. 2 A simple majority vote within the Senate can approve the
- event/initiative
- b. Alternatively, a caucus initiative can partner with a specific legislative committee
- i. A committee simple majority vote can approve said initiative/event
- 4. Internal Rules
- i. Caucuses shall define their structure, operating rules, and any other leadership not specified by
- these bylaws by creating an annual Caucus rules bill that must be approved by the Senate every
- academic year.
- 1. Annual Caucus Rules bills shall be approved by a majority vote of the Senate by end of
- September at the latest.
- 2. Rules Bills must stay within the structure provided in these bylaws, and may not outline
- any responsibilities, leadership election procedures, or anything else that contradicts these
- bylaws.
- 3. Rules Bills should include a potential caucus logo if applicable
- 4. Annual Rules Bills must be posted publicly on the SGA website. The Caucus shall not be
- allowed to carry out any of its responsibilities and shall be considered null and void until
- the Rules Bill is posted on the website.
- 5. Membership
- i. Caucus membership shall be open to all interested students of any background or demographic, in
- accordance with our Constitution
- 1. Caucuses may further define in their Rules bill the specifics of “membership” within their
- caucus
- XV. GOVERNING BOARDS
- 1. Governing Boards will be subcommittees of the CSO and fall under the CSO’s jurisdiction.
- 2. Governing Boards shall be reappointed following SGA elections in the spring.
- 3. There will be a governing board for each category of organizations under the SGA.
- i. FSL organizations and sports clubs will be exempt from governing boards.
- 4. Governing Boards shall be composed of 5 members: Chair, Secretary, Representative to the CSO, and 2
- Johns Hopkins Student Government Association Bylaws – September 2021 – Page 29
- general members.
- i. The MLC will have an independent process to appoint four of its governing board positions,
- separate from the process outlined in these bylaws. The fifth and final representative of the MLC
- governing board will be appointed by the CSO, in collaboration with and consultation of the MLC
- executive board, by the process described in these bylaws.
- 1. The MLC may choose to opt-out of this process annually by informing the CSO. Should
- they opt out, the positions will be filled as outlined in these bylaws.
- ii. The position of representative to the CSO will be specifically applied to, but the Chair and
- secretary will be chosen by the governing board from themselves.
- iii. The representative to the CSO will be a non-voting member of the CSO.
- 5. The governing board members will be chosen by an application and interview process with the CSO and
- confirmed by a simple majority of the Senate.
- i. To be a member of a governing board, you must be a member of an executive board of an
- organization under the governing board’s jurisdiction.
- ii. The MLC process for selection of four of its governing board positions is independent and
- specified by Section XIV: Governing Boards 4.a.
- 6. Decisions made within a governing board shall be made by a simple majority with each member being
- entitled to one vote.
- 7. Organizations will be required to be under the governing board of their primary categorization.
- i. Organizations will have the option to opt-in to an additional governing board with the approval of
- the governing board they wish to be added under.
- 8. Governing boards have the right to pass and send recommendations to the CSO, given that they have
- reached a majority-approved decision to do so.
- 9. The CSO can overturn any decision made by governing boards by a ⅔ vote.
- 10. A member of any governing board can be removed by ⅔ vote of the Senate at the recommendation of a
- simple majority vote of the CSO.
- 11. Governing boards shall have a meeting with all executive members under their jurisdiction twice a semester.
- 12. Governing board members should provide logistical support to organizations under them to the best of their
- ability
- 13. Regular updates about organizations under them shall be provided to the CSO.
+
Amendments between these editions
- Fast-Forward Finance Bill — Bill / Bylaws amendment · September 2026 · 114th session
- S-B.114.09.15.26-4 | Budget Transparency Act — Bill / Bylaws amendment · September 2026 · 114th session
- S-B.114.10.13.26-1 | Establishing a Transfer Student Caucus — Bill / Bylaws amendment · October 2026 · 114th session
- Bylaws Amendment: Choosing the CSAC Representative — Bill / Bylaws amendment · October 2026 · 114th session
- Closed Session Clarification Act — Bill / Bylaws amendment · October 2026 · 114th session
- Establishing an Lgbtq+ Student Caucus — Bill / Bylaws amendment · October 2026 · 114th session