ASUW Supports Student Organizations and Parking Fines
This Tuesday, ASUW Senate discussed future events and several amendments for existing bills, more specifically SB 3100 and 3101.
Senate Bill 3100 was introduced to amend the Student Organization Funding Board Policy to allow student organizations to request funds for traveling and lodging during conferences. Now passed, changes enacted will be in effect at the beginning of the 114th administration of ASUW, on May 5, 2026.
Justice Nelson, ASUW Marketing Intern and Vice President of the Competitive Speech Team at the university, said that, “[If passed], this bill will help tremendously. Members will not have to carry costs such as gas and hotel fees.”
She shared that over spring break, she was given the opportunity to travel for nationals, but because the team was not able to cover necessities such as travel and lodging, she had to take money out of her personal account— a situation that could not only drive students away from club participation, but it would also put students who are involved in academic extracurriculars at a monetary disadvantage.
“Historically, members have had to carry costs to even make tournaments possible,” Nelson said. “This activity provides academic enrichment, so with the bill passing, we can take even more members and attend more tournaments.”
The impact of this bill affects not just the Speech Team but also all organizations on campus that are looking to travel, so long as it is justifiable toward their academic enrichment.
Following this proposal, ASUW President Medina announced upcoming events that she will be taking part in to connect students to the student government further. Today, Friday April 10 at 4 p.m., Medina will be a keynote speaker in the Experiential Learning Showcase, where she will share the work that ASUW has done with Rasso.
Speaking to her fellow student government members she said, “This will be a great opportunity for you to hear the thoughts of other students on experiential learning.”
The following week on Wednesday, April 15, a meeting will occur which will follow a similar setup to the UW State of the Union. For this event, there will be 5 minutes where ASUW shares the administration’s wins and future plans. Following this, there will be an hour where conversations with administrators can occur.
Also discussed was the old news of Senate Resolution 3099, the resolution to redefine conductive energy devices. With a vote of 14-9-0, the document was accepted as legitimate amendments, however there has been no motion to pass the language on the legislation on the floor at this time. The amendment will not be considered until said motion is made. One of the largest changes made to the resolution is an inclusion of a listed petition conducted by a student organization that was in support of tasers and providing stun guns for connective energy devices and non-lethals, to which a petition of 665 signatures were collected (in support of stun-guns, under addendum E). The resolution does not support this, however it is providing evidence that the student organization is working on an identical issue.
Regarding this resolution’s proposed amendment, Senator Shosh said that, “this specific proposed amendment does a great job of expressing students’ concerns.”
“I think that it does a great job of clarifying the points of this legislation.”
For further clarification, the main reason for this is to add more information for recommending the table so that there is an addition to present to the board of trustees.
Those opposed shared concerns with ASUW, saying that there would be ways in which UWPD would have to regulate these devices, and further the conversations on concerns of safety, asking if the students’ ability to carry a taser will make them feel safer, or if it is not addressing an initial cause that would prompt carry.
As a final major point of discussion, Senate Bill 3101, also known as the “Creation of Parking Ticket Relief Program” was brought forward. As there have been significant changes to the University of Wyoming Parking Services (UWPS) that have decreased students’ access to parking, the administration in fall of 2024 from Dec 2 to Dec 13 piloted “Food for Fines” through UWPS, where students could bring two non-perishable food donations in order to receive a 30% discount off of one outstanding parking citation valued at $39.00 or less.
With the proof that students were willing to find alternative methods to pay for parking citations, the bill introduced another way of payment through community service or volunteer work for the department’s Sidekick Program.
With full support, the amendment was adopted and is in effect as of immediately after passing.
