JHU STUDENT GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION — SGA-B-2627.01 — SENATE PROCEDURAL RULES BILL 1
SENATE OF THE STUDENT GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION
OF THE JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
{S-B.26-27 04.21.26-1}
A BILL ESTABLISHING THE 2026-2027 LEGISLATIVE SESSION RULES INTRODUCED BY: Vice President of the Senate and Chair of Internal Affairs Shreemann Patel CONSIDERED THIS 21ST DAY OF APRIL IN THE YEAR 2026 Sponsored By: Chair of Academic Affairs Isaac Zhang and Sophomore Senator Abraham Aini
Be it enacted by the Senate of the Student Government Association of The Johns Hopkins University assembled that:
SECTION 1. TITLE. This Bill may be referred to as the “2026-2027 Senate Procedural Rules Bill”
SECTION 2. DEFINITIONS.
1. SGA — The term “SGA” shall refer to the Student Government Association of The Johns Hopkins University.
2. JHU, Hopkins — The terms “JHU” and “Hopkins” shall refer to Johns Hopkins University.
3. KSAS — The term “KSAS” shall refer to the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences.
4. WSE — The term “WSE” shall refer to the Whiting School of Engineering.
5. RSO— The term “RSO” shall refer to Registered Student Organizations.
SECTION 3. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES 1. FINDINGS 1.1.Per Article IV Section Three of the SGA Constitution, the Senate shall pass an annual Senate Procedural Rules Bill to govern special rules of each session. 2. PURPOSES 2.1.This act delineates terms to satisfy the aforementioned precondition.
SECTION 4. SENATE PROCEDURAL RULES 4. Senate Meetings 4.1. Senate General Body Meetings shall occur every Tuesday at 7 PM Eastern Time during the school year, with the possibility of additional meetings held for urgent matters. 4.2.Agenda
4.2.1. The Agenda shall contain the following sections by default:
4.2.1.1. Call to Order & Roll Call 4.2.1.2. Convening Business 4.2.1.2.1. New members of SGA are sworn in, if necessary. 4.2.1.2.2. The Senate conducts a vote to settle any unresolved ties in elections, if requested by the Committee on Student Elections. 4.2.1.2.3. The Senate considers confirmation of any appointees to vacant positions. 4.2.1.2.4. University Administrators may present information to the Senate for the purposes of soliciting feedback or raising awareness on topics relevant to SGA. 4.2.1.3. Amendment and Approval of the Agenda 4.2.1.3.1. The Presiding Officer will present the agenda and any amendments that have come up since distributing it. 4.2.1.3.2. Any Senator can motion to amend the agenda to add or remove items at this time. If they are adding an item, it must already be listed as pending business or they must have a link readily available to send to the Presiding Officer. 4.2.1.3.3. After the agenda is approved, no further amendments will be allowed. 4.2.1.4. Public Input 4.2.1.5. Reports 4.2.1.5.1. The Presiding Officer invites certain Executive members or Senators to deliver reports to the Senate on behalf of a position or legislative body (committees, class councils, and caucuses). This report should include only information that is relevant and important for the Senate to know for efficient functioning of either the legislative body or the Senate. The President of the Senate may impose a time limit. 4.2.1.6. Non-Legislative Business 4.2.1.6.1. Senators may present relevant information to the Senate for the purposes of soliciting feedback or raising awareness on topics relevant to SGA. 4.2.1.6.2. The Senate nominates and elects a Senator of the Month, if necessary. 4.2.1.7. First Reading 4.2.1.7.1. New legislation is introduced to the Senate. 4.2.1.7.2. The introducer(s) of the legislation explain the legislation. 4.2.1.7.3. The Senate votes to refer the legislation to a relevant committee for consideration 4.2.1.8. Second Reading 4.2.1.8.1. Legislation that has been approved by a committee, or has had a motion to discharge approved, is introduced to the Senate. 4.2.1.8.2. The introducer(s) of the legislation explain the legislation. 4.2.1.8.3. The committee that approved the legislation gives a report including: 4.2.1.8.3.1. A positive, negative, or no recommendation about passing the legislation. 4.2.1.8.3.2. Description of any amendments made between readings 4.2.1.8.4. Senators may ask questions to the introducer(s) or debate on the legislation. 4.2.1.8.4.1. If there are non-Member External Supporter(s), those individuals have speaking rights during the consideration of the legislation they are introducing. 4.2.1.8.5. The Senate votes on the legislation. 4.2.1.8. Cohort Time. 4.2.1.8.1. Different cohorts of the SGA Senate are allowed to meet and discuss any initiative and/or any pending matters. A cohort shall be defined as such: 4.2.1.8.1.1. Each class council separately, that is the freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior class councils. 4.2.1.8.1.2. The academic Senators from KSAS and WSE. 4.2.1.8.1.3. The RSO Senators 4.2.1.8.1.3. The caucus Senators 4.2.1.8.2. The President of the Senate shall have full authority to structure what occurs during this section of time. 4.2.1.8.3. This section of time can be waived with a 2/3 majority vote. 4.2.1.10. Prospective Legislation & Announcements. 4.2.1.11. Closing and Adjournment
4.2.2. Submitting business to the agenda
4.2.2.1. Legislation that has passed its first reading will be automatically added to the next week's agenda under second readings. 4.2.2.1.1. If the committee did not pass the legislation, the agenda may be amended to remove that legislation before it is approved. 4.2.2.2. All other business must be submitted to the President of the Senate by the Sunday immediately preceding the General Body Meeting by no later than 11:59 PM ET. 4.2.2.3. If the agenda does not have many items, or if urgent business comes up after the above deadline, any Senator can move to add or withdraw any item from the agenda before the approval of the agenda. 4.3.Notification
4.3.1. The President of the Senate shall send a given week’s General Body Meeting time, location, and agenda by the Monday immediately preceding the General Body Meeting by no later than 12:00 PM ET.
4.4.Meeting Minutes
4.4.1. The Secretary shall upload a copy of the General Body Meeting minutes to the SGA Google Drive Folder no later than 12 PM EST the next day following the meeting.
5. Conduct 5.1.Dress code
5.1.1. Senators shall follow a business casual dress code for General Body Meetings at the discretion of the Presiding Officer.
5.2.Rules of Conduct
5.2.1. All individuals present at Senate General Body Meetings shall demonstrate respect for the procedures of the Senate and each other. 5.2.2. All individuals present at Senate General Body Meetings shall follow all laws, rules of conduct set by JHU, and policies of the venue in which the meeting is held. 5.2.3. All individuals present at Senate General Body Meetings will refrain from disturbing the peace, including by creating excessive noise or holding side conversations. 5.2.4. All senators shall conduct themselves in a way that promotes a professional and accepting environment within the Senate and promotes public confidence in the ability of the Senate. 5.2.5. No member of SGA shall accept anything that may influence their vote or voice on any matter.
5.3.Technology
5.3.1. This section shall apply to in-person meetings only. 5.3.2. No SGA members, disregarding the Secretary, their Assistant Secretaries, and the Parliamentarian, shall be allowed to use smartphones during a General Body Meeting without explicit permission from the Presiding Officer.
5.3.2.1. The Presiding Officer shall only grant use of smartphones during General Body Meetings for the purpose of viewing legislation, presentations, or otherwise contributing to the efficiency of the Senate.
5.3.3. The use of smartphones to detract from the focus of General Body Meetings - including but not limited to: social media usage, texting, web surfing and shopping - shall be prohibited. Smartphones used for these prohibited purposes shall be confiscated by the Presiding Officer and returned at the end of the General Body Meeting.
5.4.Food and drink
5.4.1. No food shall be allowed at General Body Meetings except with permission of the Presiding Officer, however drinks shall be allowed at all times.
5.5.Right to speak
5.5.1. No Senator shall be permitted to speak during General Body Meetings unless they have obtained the floor through recognition by the Presiding Officer or are making a motion.
6. Zoom rules 6.1.Applicability
6.1.1. This Section shall apply when SGA General Body Meetings are held over Zoom
6.2.Hosting
6.2.1. The Presiding Officer shall host the Zoom Call 6.2.2. If the Presiding Officer is present but cannot host the Zoom call for any reason, the Student Body President shall host the Zoom Call 6.2.3. The host of the Zoom Call shall make the Student Body President and their Cabinet co-hosts to aid in moderating the Zoom Call
6.3.Video
6.3.1. Non-SGA attendees of Zoom GBM meetings must have their video turned off for the duration of their time in the Zoom call unless they are speaking during the public input period. 6.3.2. SGA members must turn their cameras on. 6.3.3. SGA members may leave their camera off if and only if their internet connection prohibits them from turning it on and maintaining good connectivity. 6.3.4. Valid excuses for having your camera off may be sent to the Presiding Officer.
6.3.4.1. Ex. Valid excuse: My roommates are in the background and don’t feel comfortable being in the scene. 6.3.4.2. Ex. Invalid Excuse: I am in another meeting. I don’t like how my eyeliner looks today. 6.4.Audio
6.4.1. The host of the call shall mute all meeting participants upon entry and the opening of the meeting. 6.4.2. SGA members and public input participants must mute themselves after their time has allotted if they are not muted by the host of the call
6.5.Other administrative functions
6.5.1. SGA members and public input participants shall mark their desire to speak by using the “raise hand” function on the participants tab of Zoom. 6.5.2. Motions shall be done through traditional parliamentary procedure by unmuting and speaking the motion. 6.5.3. To be added to the speaker's list, Senators may raise their hand through the raise hand function. Members of the public may raise their hands to be added to the speakers list during the public input period.
6.6.Security
6.6.1. All meeting participants must use their full names when entering the call.
6.6.1.1. Meeting participants that are found to be using any alias other than their real names shall be removed from the Zoom call. 6.6.1.2. Meeting participants found to be impersonating someone else shall be removed from the Zoom call.
6.6.2. The host of the meeting shall utilize Zoom’s wait room function.
6.6.2.1. The host of the meeting shall not admit participants whom they reasonably suspect to be using a fake name. 6.6.2.2. The host of the meeting must admit all prospective participants that appear to be JHU students. 6.6.2.3. The host of the meeting may, at their discretion, decline to admit non-student or non JHU-affiliate participants.
6.6.3. The host may, at their discretion, remove any participants that are expressing “disruptive behavior.”
6.6.3.1. Disruptive behavior may include but is not limited to: 6.6.3.1.1. Display of inappropriate, harmful, distracting, or harassing images or videos using Zoom’s video, chat or virtual background features. 6.6.3.1.2. Loud, inappropriate, distracting, harmful, or harassing audio played using any of Zoom’s features. 6.6.3.1.3. Use of the Zoom chat function for bullying, spam, harassment, or other harmful behavior.
6.6.4. The chat function shall be used sparsely and respectfully.
6.6.4.1. Questions from the public shall be private messaged to the Student Body President or their Cabinet, excepting the Secretary, during debate. Questions will be raised during debate at the discretion of the recipient of the question. 6.6.4.2. Senators may use the Private Message function to notify the Secretary of the need to leave the meeting early. 7. Attendance 7.1.Excusal of Absences
7.1.1. Excused absences include urgent academic conflicts (exams, review sessions), medical emergencies, serious illnesses, family issues, off-campus job interviews, or other conflicts per the discretion of the Presiding Officer.
7.1.1.1. Any other reason will be considered an unexcused absence.
7.1.2. The Presiding Officer of a meeting may excuse absences up to a week after the fact, but this practice is strongly discouraged for non-emergencies. 7.1.3. The Secretary shall send a notification to Senators for every third excused absence and for every single unexcused absence. 7.1.4. The Secretary shall have the responsibility of updating the general absence spreadsheet, in accordance with the attendance noted in the general body meeting minutes.
7.2.General Body Absences 7.2.1. With the exception of emergencies, an individual must notify the Presiding Officer and the Secretary before 3 PM ET the day of GBM in order for the absence to qualify as excused. 7.3.Committee Absences 7.3.1. Committee chairs of all public committees shall take attendance of committee members at committee meetings. 7.3.2. The committee chair(s) shall have the responsibility of updating the general absence spreadsheet, in accordance with the attendance noted in the committee meeting minutes. 8. Leave of Absence Notification 8.1 Senators must notify the Student Body President that they are taking a Leave of Absence as soon as possible and shall notify the Chairs of all SGA bodies they are a part of that they will be taking a Leave of Absence. 9. Conflicts of Interest 9.1.For each of their conflicts of interest, each SGA member shall:
9.1.1. Refrain from voting on bills related to their conflict of interest. 9.1.2. Refrain from accepting financial, political, social, or otherwise beneficial rewards from the source of their conflict of interest. 9.1.3. Refrain from voting on behalf of the source of their conflict of interest within any SGA context, including but not limited to:
9.1.3.1. Currying favor for their conflict of interest, and 9.1.3.2. Conducting SGA business so as to favor their conflict of interest. 10. Accountability 10.1. Disciplinary Mark System
10.1.1. A member of SGA may accrue disciplinary marks for not performing their duties as a senator or not following the rules set forth in the Bylaws and this Rules Bill, and is subject to investigation by the Internal Affairs. Reasons for such marks include but are not limited to:
10.1.1.1. Not completing action items from a meeting 10.1.1.2 Not submitting an update by the weekly deadline to the Student Body President’s Cabinet. This also applies to Cabinet members. 10.1.1.3 Disclosing the contents of closed sessions or other known to be confidential information. 10.1.1.4. Not submitting meeting minutes 10.1.1.5. Disruptive behavior in meetings, including but not limited to speaking without permission, distracting other members, or improperly using technology 10.1.1.6. Misusing SGA resources, including but not limited to abuse of email access, connections with administration, and access to SGA purchases. 10.1.1.7 Any other behavioral or procedural infractions that the Internal Affairs Committee may deem as severe enough to warrant a Disciplinary Mark.
10.1.2. Disciplinary marks are calculated per academic semester and do not carry over (i.e. fall and spring). 10.1.3. Any SGA member may report disciplinary infractions to the Secretary, who will keep a record of the reasons for and number of marks against a senator. The Secretary will then inform the Internal Affairs committee of the reported infraction. 10.1.4. Any person with conflict of interest will be removed from the investigation and related processes. 10.1.5. The record of disciplinary infractions will be publicly available on the SGA website. 10.1.6. Consequences
10.1.6.1. After due investigation, the Internal Affairs committee may give disciplinary marks ranging from 0-3 depending on the severity of the case. 10.1.6.1.1. First, the legitimacy of the complaint necessitating disciplinary marks shall be determined through a majority vote of members of the Internal Affairs committee. 10.1.6.1.2. The amount of disciplinary marks will then be assigned through a majority vote of members of the Internal Affairs committee. In the case no majority is reached, the individual shall be assigned the number of disciplinary marks equal to the lowest value which received the highest plurality of the Internal Affairs vote. 10.1.6.2. A record of the disciplinary marks assigned for given infractions shall be maintained by the Internal Affairs committee to allow for standardization.
10.1.7. A member of SGA with three disciplinary marks against them in any given semester will be automatically subject to an impeachment trial.
10.1.7.1 For every two disciplinary marks after the first three, the member of SGA will automatically be subject to an impeachment trial.
10.1.8. Disciplinary marks cannot be accrued during a medical or family emergency leave.
11. Email 11.1. By precedent, the Student Body President shall write and send an email to the student body each month through the sga@jhu.edu email that provides updates on the SGA’s work. This email will include attachments of policy passed during General Body Meetings. 11.2. The Senate shall have the right to review the email before it is sent out in order to ensure it is an accurate and fair portrayal of SGA’s work. 11.3. The Student Body President and their Cabinet shall have access to the sga@jhu.edu email account so as to more efficiently process inquiries in their realms that are directed to the email’s inbox. 11.4. The Student Body President and their Cabinet shall forward committee-specific and class-specific emails received at sga@jhu.edu to the relevant Senator(s). 11.5. Class Presidents shall have access to their class email account and listserv. 11.6. The singular administrator of each email account shall be required to ensure that their colleagues have access to their email account. Failure to ensure equitable access or deliberate evasion of equitable access may be considered dereliction of duty, and thus, grounds for impeachment. 11.7 When requesting meetings or initiating conversations with university administrators via email, the email must have Charles O Norman III (charlesiii@jhu.edu) and Tekeya Peterson (tpeter46@jh.edu) CC’ed on it for transparency. This is for transparency alone, and neither Charles nor Tekeya may reprimand or bar a Senator for or from initiating conversations. Additionally, this requirement is waived for any conversations with administrators which are initiated regarding the conduct of LEED 12. Social Media 12.1. Once a month, the Director of Communications shall post an update to the official SGA Instagram page containing updates on SGA’s work 12.2. This shall include a list of policies passed and important (at the discretion of the Student Body President and their Cabinet) meetings with administrators. 13. Institutional Memory 13.1. Transition Memos shall be due on May 1st, 2027 to the outgoing Executive Board for compilation and distribution to the incoming SGA. 14. Constituency Meetings 14.1 Twice each semester, the Vice President of the Senate shall facilitate meetings between student organization representatives, caucus representatives, representatives of each class, and representatives of each school. 15. Motions 15.1 Any member of SGA can motion during a GBM to address the Senate. Such a motion is introduced by a member asking the presiding officer if they may address the Senate (“Motion to address the Senate”). It is at the presiding officer’s sole discretion whether or not the member can proceed with a motion to address the Senate. This does not affect “questions of personal privilege”.
SECTION 5. SEVERABILITY. Should any provision of this Act, an amendment made by this Act, or the application of such provision or amendment to any person or circumstance be held to be unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act, the amendments made by this Act, and the application of such provision or amendment to any person or circumstances shall not be affected thereby.
THE BILL HEREBY PASSES BY A VOTE OF X TO X WITH X ABSTENTIONS.
UPON PASSAGE, WE HAVE HEREUNTO SET OUR HANDS AND CAUSED THE SEAL OF THE SENATE TO BE AFFIXED TO THIS BILL INDICATING THE SENATE’S ASSENT AND THUS OFFICIALLY DESIGNATED THE BILL’S ADOPTION AS LAW.
SIGNATURES OF ENACTMENT:
__________________________________ JASON YU STUDENT BODY PRESIDENT OF THE JOHNS HOPKINS SGA
__________________________________ JAZZLYN FERNANDEZ PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE OF THE JOHNS HOPKINS SGA
__________________________________ SUMIRE SUMI VICE PRESIDENT OF THE JOHNS HOPKINS SGA
__________________________________ HONORA MURATORI SECRETARY OF THE JOHNS HOPKINS SGA
__________________________________ AMY XU TREASURER OF THE JOHNS HOPKINS SGA