Sunday evening, the Union Senate passed a new bylaw that significantly changes the club chartering process. Previously, a group needed signatures from at least 10 students interested in being club members in order to charter a new club. Under the new bylaw, 200 student signatures are needed to charter a club, and at least 20 of these signatories must commit to active involvement following chartering. The standard for being a recognized club that is ineligible for Allocations Board funding, remains five student signatures. A chartered club is eligible for funding.

The bylaw has been under discussion for weeks, under the auspices of the Union Senate's recently-formed Ways and Means Committee. This semester, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of clubs being chartered, according to Senate Communications Director Marci Surkes '03. For example, at the Nov. 10 Union Senate meeting alone, eight new clubs were chartered, making them eligible to apply to the Allocations Board for funding.

Many senators said they expressed concern that too many clubs on campus are competing for limited Student Activities Fee funds. "We thought that we had become a rubber stamp for creating new clubs," Class of 2005 Senator Michael Corwin said. "There is just not enough money to go around anymore."

Student Union Treasurer Josh Brandfon '05 said chartered clubs have requested over $390,000 in funding for the spring semester. The Allocations Board, however, only has $156,000 in funding to distribute to these clubs, leaving a large discrepancy. Brandfon also cited the increased number of clubs competing for funding. He said approximately 110 clubs requested funding from the Allocations Board for the fall semester, but that number has increased to 135 for the spring semester.

East Quad Senator Andre Khots '05 said that before deciding on the bylaw's wording, senators researched club chartering policies of peer institutions, such as Harvard and Tufts. Tufts currently requires 200 student signatures for a club to be chartered.

Two hundred signatures will not always be necessary for a club to be chartered under the new bylaw. A clause within the bylaw reads: "In extenuating circumstances, the Senate reserves the right to consider a club that has not fulfilled the ... signature requirement. In order to consider such a club, it must submit a letter stating how the organization has attempted to obtain the signatures and why they feel it has been an impossible endeavor. At the discretion of the Executive Senator, such a club may be added to the agenda for charter consideration."

Castle Quad Senator Pam Hoffman '03, who cast the lone dissenting vote on the bylaw, said she feels this clause gives the Executive Senator too much power in determining which prospective clubs can bypass the 200 signature policy. "I had wanted to amend it. I specifically addressed the Executive Senator (Kate Vogel '03), and she said there won't be that many cases and she can handle it," she said. "I forsee a lot more than the few controversial clubs (the senate) can predict will go to her."

Rosenthal Quad Senator Erica Lemansky '05, who co-authored the bylaw with Corwin, said she was not concerned with giving the Executive Senator the power to determine which clubs can get on the agenda after obtaining less than 200 signatures. "If the Executive Senator was ever unsure or unclear about their position, they could go to the senate or the E-board," she said. "They are elected by other senators. We all believe they have the capability to make those decisions."

The Union Senate has been working to improve its interaction with clubs on campus throughout the semester, and has created the new position of club liaison. Nathaniel Westheimer '05, the club liasion, said he has begun a review process with a committee of over a dozen students in order to improve the club system on campus. He said he believes the message of the senate's bylaw was premature, and "was hoping that other steps would be taken before this one," including taking the results of the club liaison committee meetings into account. The first club liaison committee meeting was held Nov. 26.

"The bylaw certainly makes my job easier, but I'm not looking to have an easy job," Westheimer said. "My job is to just make everybody play well together and use the resources that are currently available instead of changing the system."

Several campus leaders who did not participate in the senate vote expressed concern about the new system, especially with the much-increased number of signatures needed to charter a club. "Two hundred is an extremely large amount (of signatures). That is half the signatures need to get an amendment on the ballot," Allocations Board Chair Noah Branman '03 said. "For the most part, it is the established clubs that are asking (the Allocations Board) for a lot of money."

In today's State of the Union address, Student Union President Ben Brandzel '03 said,"While I respect the spirit behind this initiative, I think it places too draconian a barrier at the wrong part of the process. Students who have not yet chartered a club may be easily dissuaded and intimidated by the process."

Ziv Quad Senator Colin Rowan '04 said he feels obtaining 200 signatures is not too heavy a burden to place on club leaders. "People are pretty open to signatures," he said. "If you walk through Usdan and ask people you see to sign (a club petition), people are surprisingly willing to."

Surkes said she was impressed by the initiative the Union Senate has taken to reform the club-chartering process. "This is a very bold step; perhaps even bolder than I expected them to be," she said. "But, I think this is a good first attempt. Nothing is set in stone. If 200 signatures is a problem for students, I'm sure the senate would consider amending it next semester."