• During the last chance for club sports to receive additional funding from an $18,000 budget surplus, ten senators were absent and the legislation failed by a single vote
• MUSG President Ray Redlingshafer said he will explore the possibility of re-opening the previous allocations period for club sports.
• Redlingshafer will try to secure at least the amount of money originally designated for club sports
• More than a dozen representatives of various club sports attended last Thursday's MUSG meeting to criticize senators for their failure to pass the legislation.

Club sports may not be out of luck when it comes to receiving a portion of the $18,000 Student Activity Fee surplus Marquette Student Government allocated at their Jan. 22 meeting.

MUSG President Ray Redlingshafer announced his intentions at the Jan. 29 meeting to investigate the possibility of re-opening the allocations period that originally closed on Nov. 14.

Under MUSG rules, that was the last time club sports could apply for funding for the period of activity from Jan. 12 to May 3.

During the Nov. 13 MUSG meeting, a bill that would have allocated $3,850 to club sports was defeated by a 19-1 vote in which 10 of the 30 total senators were absent and a two-thirds majority vote was required for passage.

Last Thursday, about 15 representatives of various club sports attended the meeting to criticize senators for their absences at the Nov. 13 meeting and request a new funding period.

Allison Bresnahan, president of the women's club volleyball team, read a prepared statement to the Senate.

"How can club sports be given a fair chance with 10 senate members absent?" said Bresnahan, a senior in the College of Health Sciences. "This lack of attention raises major concerns for our government."

In response, Redlingshafer, a senior in the College of Business Administration, said he would convene with the MUSG financial vice president and the Student Organizations Allocation Committee and attempt to re-open the funding period.

"I want to assure you I was disappointed in the Senate's decision," he said to the club sports representatives.

Redlingshafer said he would try to secure the previously proposed $3,850 for club sports, if not more.

Only club sports that submitted funding requests for the now-closed period will be considered, Redlingshafer said.

Bresnahan emphasized how crucial the funding was to the very existence of club sports.

"In the last two years, funding has decreased significantly," she said. "Every decision they make has a huge impact on us."

Redlingshafer could not guarantee the success of this endeavor, but said he would attempt to have a proposal ready for this Thursday's MUSG meeting.

In other MUSG news…

 The Senate approved SOA funding for period five for student organizations holding events from Feb. 2 to May 3.

The largest allocation was $12,000 for the Les Aspin Center Student Alumni Council to help bring Democratic political consultant James Carville to campus in March.

If the group is not able to secure Carville as a speaker, the $12,000 will be reallocated to other student organizations.

The other allocations senators approved included $2,544 for the Bayanihan Student Organization, $2,616.82 for Marquette Radio and $1,890 for the National Society of Black Engineers. The full Senate must approve any allocations above $1,500.

 Senators voted to table for two weeks a bill that would have required the default printing mode for all PrintWise printers to be double-sided.

The aim of the bill was to limit printing costs and benefit the environment by using less paper

However, some senators were concerned that faculty had not been contacted about this possibility and voiced fears over instructors not accepting double-sided class work.

The vote to table passed with an 18-9 vote.

 Erin Shawgo was elected the new programs vice president for MUSG.

Shawgo, a sophomore in the College of Arts & Sciences, was elected by a vote of 25-3 via a secret ballot.

 The Senate attempted to elect current Financial Vice President Jimmy Schott, a senior in the College of Business Administration, as Senate parliamentarian.

However, because Schott's term as financial vice president does not end for a couple of weeks and MUSG rules state members cannot hold two positions at once, the Senate voted down the proposal.

Senators expressed uneasiness at the precedent of circumventing rules.